


Alex, You Gotta Fend for Yourself

by lokithegodofsass



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi, Mystery, Nonbinary Character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-09
Updated: 2017-06-22
Packaged: 2018-08-14 02:26:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 47,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7995262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lokithegodofsass/pseuds/lokithegodofsass
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alexander Hamilton, a hitman with a guilty conscience, was expecting an easy job when he gets John Laurens's name and photograph in the mail. He was surprised to find out that John had also been watching him and is determined to get to know him better. What was supposed to be a simple job spirals out of control and Alexander quickly gives in and makes it his new job to find out who wants John dead, all while trying to keep a very romantically interested John at arm's length.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. An Unusal Job

It was 2am and Alexander was walking home from the post office, feeling like his eyelids had miniature weights over them. He was close to his home, but the prospect of returning was rather uninviting. He’d just spend yet another night staring out of his apartment window at the parking lot and waiting for the sun to rise. 

He was carrying an envelope in each pocket of his gray sweatshirt, both unaddressed. The one in the left pocket was heavier. He slipped his hand into that pocket to casually hold that one in place, since it contained about $10,000 in it. He’d anonymously donate most of that to charities towards education to ease his guilty conscience when he got the chance. The one in the right pocket, however, would raise more questions and that one was more heavily guarded.

The envelope with the money was tossed aside when Alexander got home. He could return to that one later. Even though no one had ever set foot in his living room and no one ever would, he still was uncomfortable leaving any trace of it outside of his bedroom.

The bedroom was set up as more of a study. The closest thing containing a bed was a lumpy futon in the closet. Alexander didn’t use one enough to justify buying anything nicer. Alexander pulled back his chair and sat down, tearing open the envelope quickly. Just as he was expecting, it yielded a blurry photo with a handwritten name on the back of it.

_John Laurens._

Alexander read over the name once or twice. Used an orange mechanical pencil to push his hair into a messy bun. Studied the person’s handwriting; how the ‘h’ in John was slightly smudged and the ‘aur’ in Laurens was all connected, like in cursive. The picture showed a man, curly hair tied in a ponytail, face frozen in mid-laugh, a red sharpie drawing an angry X that almost stabbed through the paper over all of this. The picture was taken through the window of a restaurant, probably with a flip phone judging from the pixelated quality. John’s expression indicated that he wasn’t alone in the photo but it was cropped so that he couldn’t know for sure. He looked kind, boyishly handsome, normal. Usually the pictures would show the intended victim glaring or doing something terrible, as if they were trying to convince Alexander that this person deserved to die. But he wasn’t sure why this man did to deserve having his name snuck into his P.O. Box in the dead of the night, but he wasn’t allowed to ask questions. He couldn’t have even if it was allowed; ghost hirers didn’t leave any sort of information.

Physically, this wouldn’t be too hard. Usually the people that wound up in Alexander’s box were menaces to society. They were usually burly men that Alexander had to rely on his quick reflexes to take down. If he relied on pure strength, he would be squashed like a bug so he had to plan out an attack for every possible scenario. John seemed to be around his size. He’d have to take a different approach with him.

He justified his job by saying to himself that the world would be a better place without these burly menaces to society. Questions and uncertainties about John Laurens sparked in his brain that he instantly shoved away. He couldn’t help it; his curious nature would take over and demand answers at times. But he couldn’t let himself get caught up in that.

Despite the vast difference between John Laurens and the burly men, the handwritten name and the x’d out picture wound up on the same desk. A small dagger holding it in place, just like the others. Surrounded by a messy stack of pictures that had blue checkmarks over the red x’s in Alexander’s own handwriting. 

That night, Alexander’s dreams were haunted by laughing men with thick red x’s masking all of their features. He got about a half hour’s night sleep before giving up.

.

Finding John Laurens turned out to be a piece of cake. The man kept to a fairly regular schedule, which Alexander was reviewing over a cup of coffee at John’s favorite morning diner. He was the dream victim, minus the fact that Alexander still could not come up with a reason why someone would hate him enough to put him on his radar.

  * _Weekdays, 7am. Give or take half an hour.: Breakfast with two friends. Coffee, lots of coffee._
  * _Friend 1: Hercules Mulligan. Tall, dark skin, strong. Works for a tailor. Bright clothes._
  * _Friend 2: Lafayette (?? could be a nickname?). Heavy French accent, hair tied back. Not sure of career. Comes from money; research family._
  * _Weekdays, 9am-5pm: Work. Graphic designer. Grabs lunch with Eliza Schuyler at 1:00pm (sometimes earlier). Dark hair, Chinese, small, pretty. Sometimes joined by two other girls (*IMPORTANT!! FIND OUT NAMES!!)_
  * _Weekdays 5:30pm: Bikes home. Has a small dog. Yappy. Catch him elsewhere._



“Hey.”

Alexander quickly slammed his book shut. He had picked a back table just so that no one would try to strike up a conversation. He was supposed to be invisible with his cup of coffee and baggy black clothes. Normal, boring even. Not interesting enough to strike up a conversation with. He had spent years perfecting this look.

He was horrified to find a familiar face, no red X or frozen laugh in sight, smiling politely at him. Alexander hadn’t gotten close enough to see the spark in his eye or the freckles that dusted his skin, which only added to his boyish charm and got the questions spinning again.

“Hi,” Alexander answered as soon as he figured out how to make his voice work again. John chuckled gently and tucked a stray curl behind his ear. “Can I help you with anything?” If John had sensed the bite in his tone, he seemed nonplussed by it.

“I’ve seen you hanging around here for the past couple days,” John glanced down at Alexander’s coffee. “Everyday, or at least every day that I’m here. Sitting by yourself, scratching in that book of yours.” Alexander definitely hadn’t noticed that John was also taking mental notes on him. But then again they usually didn’t notice him.

“I’m working on a book.” Lying was second nature to him; he lied to himself daily.

“That’s cool,” the corners of John’s eyes crinkled as he grinned at Alexander. “I work as a graphic designer. Artistic minds think alike, don’t they?” Alexander nodded before giving him his bitchiest ‘what do you want?’ glare. “I’m John, by the way. John Laurens.”

“Alexander Hamilton,” Alexander introduced himself after taking a moment to decide to use his real name. No one that hired him knew that so there was no risk factor.

“Well, Alexander Hamilton,” John reached his hand out for a handshake. Alexander decided to give up on his usual methods of not making contact and took his hand with a forced smile for a brief handshake. “You should come sit with me and my friends. We’re always here at the same time and there’s no reason for you to sit by yourself.”

“Do you normally invite strangers to your table?” Alexander gave John a small smile so that he didn’t seem totally horrible. If he wasn’t the guy that he was stalking and intending to kill, he wouldn’t have minded sitting with him. He didn't want John to feel uncomfortable, even though he probably should have at least attempted to so that he'd go away.

“Not normally,” John laughed at his question. “Because that would be weird. Can’t you tell by how good I am at this?” 

“Thanks for the offer, but I’m okay,” Alexander answered softly, reaching for his book and tucking it in his backpack. The same one that had a small knife stowed away in the laptop zipper. “I was just heading out.”

“Please?” John asked, his sparkling eyes shining in sadness. Alexander took a deep breath and fixed him with another bitchy look. John definitely caught onto that one. “Okay. Fine. You’re onto me. My friends and I made a bet that if I could get you to join us, they’d give me $20.”

“$20, huh?” Alexander asked wearily. He wasn’t sure what it was about him that made his presence at a habitual breakfast with friends worth $20. Plus, he’d make way more than that if he just slit John’s throat right then and there and somehow wasn’t arrested for it. “Fine. Give me 5 of that and we’ll be even.”

“Deal!” John’s fingers, warm from holding his morning coffee, wrapped tightly around Alexander’s wrist. Maybe an unusual victim would bring unforeseen complications to the job after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! So I'm doing some shameless self promotion here ha. I'm on [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com) or on twitter @linandt0nic if you wanted to come talk about Hamilton, or anything really


	2. Cute Coffee Hitman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Mulligan, I swear to God!” John fixed Hercules, who seemed to have a personality to match his larger than life stature, with a glare. Despite John’s tone, Alexander didn’t miss the blush that flooded his cheeks. “Hercules Mulligan, Lafayette, this is Alexander.” When he turned his attention back to Alexander, his cheeks were still flushed. “Now, please ignore everything they’ve said so far and everything that they’re going to say. They’re assholes. Honestly, I’m not sure why I’m still friends with them.”
> 
> I’m much worse, Alexander wanted to respond.

“Well, I’ll be damned.” Hercules Mulligan looked up from his order of pancakes with sliced bananas when he heard John and Alexander approaching. He was somehow able to pull off bright yellow pants and, even though Alexander wanted to shy away from his bright clothes and smile, he had to admit that he liked it. Hercules wasn’t the only one wearing colorful clothes. Lafayette was sporting a purple tank top, while John was wearing a red T shirt. Alexander felt like a black hole that was overpowered by brightness (and thus failing miserably at its purpose) in comparison.

“Laurens got the cute coffee man to come over and say hello!” Lafayette added, his French accent seamlessly stringing words together. His voice almost sounded melodious, and it could have quickly put Alexander at ease if he let it.

“What?” Alexander asked at the same time John hissed, “shut up!”

“Dude, ignore my lovely partner,” Hercules stated quickly, doing something under the table so that Lafayette flinched and growled something in indistinguishable French. “They’ve been trying to get dear Johnny a boyfriend for about a year now so he doesn’t feel like a third wheel every time we hang out.” Alexander would have to remember to add this new information to his book, which now seemed to weigh down his backpack like a large block of lead.

“Mulligan, I swear to _God_!” John fixed Hercules, who seemed to have a personality to match his larger than life stature, with a glare. Despite John’s tone, Alexander didn’t miss the blush that flooded his cheeks. “Hercules Mulligan, Lafayette, this is Alexander.” When he turned his attention back to Alexander, his cheeks were still flushed. “Now, please ignore everything they’ve said so far and everything that they’re going to say. They’re assholes. Honestly, I’m not sure why I’m still friends with them.”

 _I’m much worse,_ Alexander wanted to respond. 

“They’re just looking out for you, it’s nice,” he answered instead. John gave him an apologetic smile as he pulled a chair from the empty table next door and gestured for him to sit down.

“See? Cute Coffee Man gets us,” Hercules gave Alexander a broad smile and he couldn’t help but smile back in return.

“So where’s my twenty bucks?” John asked. “And is it twenty total or twenty from each of you? Because he was hesitant, I had to work hard.”

“It’s true, I was,” Alexander aided quickly, taking another sip of his coffee. “I was told that I got a five dollar cut so small bills.”

“I really like Cute Coffee Man,” Lafayette reached into their wallet and slid a five to each of them.

_You really shouldn’t._

“Right? He’s a keeper, Laurens,” Hercules gave a ten dollar bill to John. “And ten from each of us, we’re not made of money.”

“Lafayette literally has their entire family’s inheritance,” John pointed out with an eye roll. He seemed to notice Alexander’s eyebrow raise at that tidbit about his friend and went on to explain, “Their parents were crazy rich French aristocrats or royalty or something. When they died and left Laf as an orphan, they got everything. None of us know exactly how rich they are, but they don’t have a job or anything.”

_That’s why I couldn’t find that information._

“I’m an orphan too!” Alexander shared quickly, ignoring the voice in his head that was warning him to keep his life a secret. “My parents weren’t aristocrats though. We were dirt poor and everything that my family had was destroyed in the hurricane so no inheritance.” The other three exchanged silent looks laced with pity and an awkward feeling settled in Alexander’s stomach. He thought he had gotten better at controlling his tendency to overshare over the years, but maybe that was just because he couldn’t remember the last real conversation he had. He needed more coffee if he was going to start having epiphanies like that. 

“What hurricane was it?” John asked after a moment. “Katrina?” Alexander shook his head quickly, pulling a face at the taste of his now lukewarm drink.

“It hit the Caribbean,” Alexander explained as he pushed his drink to the side. There wasn’t much he disliked more than lukewarm coffee. It reminded him too much of himself; once great but now a pale comparison of his former self. “West Indies, to be exact. That’s where I’m from. It missed America so I don’t think it got enough coverage.”

“Damn,” Hercules mumbled softly. “John’s the only true blooded American here. I’m from Ireland, but we moved to the city when I was six.”

“It’s true, although none of us guessed Ireland from looking at him,” John confirmed with a smile in Alexander’s direction that seemed way too friendly considering that they just met. “I’m from South Carolina, you can’t get much more stereotypically American than that.”

“Are you really?” Alexander was quickly realizing that there was only so much you could learn about a person by sitting at a faraway table and observing. Perhaps he should have stalked John’s Facebook or something. “You don’t seem very South Carolinian.” 

“Which is why I left as soon as I could,” John said with a short laugh. “I didn’t have a Confederate flag hanging on my wall. I’m not attracted to girls. I’m a decent human being. I was like a black sheep there. Losing the Southern _draaaawl_ was easy as pie.” Hercules and Lafayette laughed at his exaggerated accent, but Alexander was too distracted by a flock of new questions.

Could that be why someone wants him dead? For not being attracted to girls? That was a possibility, although it would leave Alexander hating whoever hired him to do the job more than he could ever bring himself to hate John. Especially since, even though he very rarely acted on either, his own attractions weren’t mutually exclusive to girls. That could be a conflict of interest to say the least. 

“He’s always been a true New Yorker,” Hercules gave John’s shoulder a rough pat, causing him to squeeze his eyelids shut and pull a face. “God just put him in the wrong state when he was born.”

“When I first got here, I felt like I had finally found somewhere that I truly belonged,” John clarified. “I could be myself here, you know?” 

“I felt the same way when I first came here,” Alexander had no coffee to sip on as a social crutch so he had no choice but to look directly at John. “Like I was coming home from a long trip instead of arriving somewhere for the first time. It was exhilarating.” John’s gaze softened when Alexander made eye contact and his lips parted gently, as if Alexander’s simple words had touched his heart. He was truly beautiful.

New York was stunning and filled with brilliant minds like his own, which was great in that he didn’t feel like his curiosity stuck out so much but it also meant that writing essays didn’t render the same results that it did in Nevis. New York was the greatest city in the world but that greatness ate him alive. He found that he had to do things he never would’ve dreamed of being capable of to obtain his law degree. Trying to quit after graduation only got a target placed on his back and not even the law degree that had gotten him into this mess in the first place could save him from being consumed by his wrongdoings. 

No, he really didn’t feel like a real human being until he first sat down with this group. Watching the life leave John Laurens’s eyes was going to be truly heartbreaking. 

He couldn’t do it. He couldn’t hurt someone that saw the bags under his eyes and still smiled at him like he hung the stars in the sky. Someone that pushed past all of his flimsy walls and saw the good in him, the good that he had long forgotten about. Someone that had friends that cared enough about him to have breakfast with him five times a week at the same diner and make (admittedly misguided) attempts to set him up with strangers. Someone who made an effort so that Alexander would feel included in a conversation with his best friends that didn’t concern him. Someone as funny, charming, and radiant as John Laurens didn’t deserve to die.

Which raised a concerning question. Who was Alexander to decide who _did_ deserve death in the first place? He wasn’t arrogant enough to believe that he could make that decision for someone else. Maybe the decision to spare John’s life would wind up killing him, but what he currently had was a life worth sacrificing. He’d welcome anything that happened as a consequence of his change of heart.

“Alexander?” John’s voice was faded against his mental soliloquy but it still rang like a distant bell. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah,” Alexander could hear that his voice sounded distant. “Thank you for inviting me to sit with you guys, but I really have to go.”

“Sure, man,” Hercules reached his hand across the table and laughed when it was met with a stinted handshake. “Don’t be a stranger, come crash our breakfasts if you see us.”

“It was good to meet you, Cute Coffee Man,” Lafayette added with a grin, also getting an awkward handshake from Alexander. 

“You know,” John started as Alexander reached for a handshake, hoping that this one was more comfortable than the previous ones, “I should probably head off to work. I’ll walk you out.” Alexander knew for a fact that John wasn’t due to leave for work for another 45 minutes but he wasn’t about to mention that. Judging by the victorious smirk on Lafayette’s face and the congratulatory hand squeeze they got from Hercules, the pair had caught on too.

“Sure, why not?” Alexander couldn’t come up with a reason why that wouldn’t work that didn’t involve explaining why he really shouldn’t be alone with John Laurens. He swung his backpack over his shoulders, its presence reminding him that letting this happen was an awful idea. John’s smile as he held the door open for Alexander to step through was flooded with emotions. Excitement, nerves, confidence, uncertainty, a million others that Alexander couldn’t put his finger on.

“I have a confession,” John stated bluntly as the door swung closed, the rusted bell tied to the handle clanking lightly against the glass. “Lafayette and Hercules weren’t just trying to randomly set me up with a stranger.”

“John, I-“

“Well, actually I guess they were but there was a reason behind it,” John stepped closer and Alexander’s heart rate quickened. The same emotions from when they were leaving, the same emotions that seemed to linger on his face whenever Alexander spoke, swirled in his gaze. “We don’t normally invite strangers to our table.”

“Because that would be weird,” Alexander echoed John’s statement from when he had asked that same question earlier that morning. That felt like a lifetime ago. 

“Yes, it would be,” John laughed softly. He was inches away now and Alexander felt like his feet were encased in cement. “But you were never just some stranger, Alexander.”

“What are you talking about?” Alexander’s voice was hushed; a moment like this called for nothing more. Some of John’s confidence from earlier was swept away at that question.

“Please stop me if I start making a fool of myself,” John’s eyes fell to Alexander’s ratty Converse. One look at them and the no one would ever believe that $10,000 in cash still sat in an unopened envelope in Alexander’s living room. “Or if I completely misread the entire situation and you’re actually straight and I’m wasting my breath. But I saw you out of the corner of my eye about three days ago and you just shined, like a single beacon of light in the darkness. My attention was constantly drawn to you as you sat at the same table with a cup of coffee, writing who-knows-what in that book of yours. Even when we’re not at the diner, I still feel like I see you everywhere I go. I can’t get you out of my head.” 

“John,” Alexander repeated. John probably was seeing him everywhere because he was following him, taking notes detailing every unusual stop he made, every person’s name that he had a conversation with written in his book. Still, if he missed the fact that his intended victim was harboring a big crush on him he must really be getting rusty.

“Meet me for dinner somewhere?” John requested, his tone pleading. “Just us. Without Herc and Laf.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” each word scratched harshly at Alexander’s throat, threatening to choke him up. Every previous emotion quickly flooded from John’s face until he was just left with one: a look like he had just been slapped in the face. “I should go.”

“Whatever,” John whispered bitterly, quickly stepping away to Alexander and working to unlock his bike. “I have work anyways. Bye.” Every fiber of his being screamed at him to run up and pull John into a kiss that he knew would change the course of his entire life. But he didn’t. Instead he turned on his heel and walked back to his apartment so that he could come up with a strategy to track down whoever wanted John dead before they decided to cut out the middle-hitman and take matters into their own hands.

If the book of notes felt like a block of lead, then his heart felt like it was made of uranium.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! So I've been really enjoying this story (despite the overload of Alexander angst and John's confession at the end even though I knew that he'd be rejected when I was writing it) and I can't wait to introduce the rest of the characters. Digging a little into Alexander's past was really fun and I'm hoping to sprinkle more details about him in subsequent chapters.
> 
> Oh and I'm also on [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com) and on twitter @linandt0nic in case you wanted to come find me


	3. Hailing a Cab

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Speaking of dinner, wanna grab some?"
> 
> .
> 
> Alternatively, John invites Alexander to a Schuyler hosted event.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a mild reference to violence at the end of the chapter. I didn't want to get super graphic with it so it's not all that intense.
> 
> I made up for it with John's yapping dog.

Alexander locked himself in his apartment for the rest of the week, alternating between pouring over every finite detail in his notebook and analyzing the photograph. He told himself that he was simply planning out a strategy to protect an innocent man and definitely not avoiding a very handsome one.

On Thursday, Hercules and Lafayette sent him friend requests on Facebook. He accepted those happily, although he was surprised that they found his profile since he really only used it to pass time in online arguments with idiotic strangers. When a request came in from John the next day, he accepted it a little more hesitantly. He had been sure that the guy hated him for turning down his advances without providing an explanation that was better than ‘I don’t think this is a good idea’.

 _Breaking his heart beats stabbing it,_ he’d tell himself when Hurt John joined Frozen Laughter John in his nightmares.

The friend request provided him with an excuse to redirect all his energy that he would’ve used stalking John into looking at the profiles of everyone that John knew. While he was sure that this search would come up empty, he wasn’t about to leave any stone unturned.

John’s lunch buddy, Eliza Schuyler, didn’t seem to be a likely choice but Alexander did gain something from clicking on her profile picture: a caption that provided a positive ID for the other girls that would occasionally join in her lunch break with John. 

_We’re monstrous older sisters… We FORCED Phil Jr to take a nice sibling photo with us!_ _J -with **Angelica Schuyler** and **Peggy Schuyler**_

Alexander quickly realized that Angelica, Eliza’s older sister, worked for the state’s congressman George Washington. Something about her reminded Alexander of the person he used to be before he was trapped in his current life like a turtle in a fishing net. Alexander added her name to his notebook with a small question mark next to it. Peggy was sixteen and had a picture of her holding a kitten as her profile picture. Phil Jr didn’t have a profile but he looked like he was in kindergarten. Alexander was able to easily rule them both out. Their father, Phillip Schuyler, was a Senator and seemingly single father that agreed with Alexander’s inner lawyer on many issues. He was ruled out as well.

Just as Alexander was about to start his journey down John’s friends list, his computer binged softly at him.

**\--Chat from John Laurens—**

**John:** hey

 **John:** so I’m gonna be honest, I’ve been staring at my phone for about 10 minutes and trying to think of something to say

 **John:** long story short, I hope that what I said outside of the diner isn’t keeping you from your morning coffee or grabbing breakfast with us again because I think you’re really cool. laf, herc, and I really want to hang out with you again

 **John:** I have a crush but I’ll get over it if that means we could be friends. promise.

 **John:** damn it alexander, I can see your read receipts. pls say something

 **Alexander** : Sorry! We should exchange phone numbers. I don’t go onto Facebook too often.

 **John:** ok cool

John sent his phone number quickly after and, despite the fact that a persistent voice insisted that more contact was a bad idea, Alexander had to bite back a smile. 

**-John Laurens-**

**Alexander:** Hi! –A.H.

 **John:** hi

 **John:** did you just put your initials as a signature?

 **Alexander:** Yeah! So you’d know who I am

 **John:** how many people do you think I’ve given my number to in the past two minutes?

 **Alexander:** All of the strangers that you’re inviting to eat dinner with you ;-)

 **John:** you’re onto me lol

 **John:** speaking of dinner, wanna grab some?

 **Alexander:** You know I was joking, right? You need help

 **John:** shut up! one of my friends from work invited me to a social gathering

 **Alexander:** I don’t know this friend; it wouldn’t be weird for me to just show up?

 **John:** it’s like an old school ball type of thing so a ton of people are bringing friends

 **John:** lafayette is bringing hercules as their boyfriend so it would be weird if I went with them

 **John:** you can’t say no to free food

 **Alexander:** That’s a fair point! Where should I meet you?

 **John:** you can just meet me at my place, I’ll send you the address

 **John:** fair warning though… this place is pretty fancy so if you have nothing to wear I could find something for you to borrow. we’re probably close to the same size

 **Alexander:** I’ve got something perfect, don’t worry

 **John:** ok see you soon

Alexander kept his “pretty fancy” outfit in the back of his closet, hidden away until a job called for sneaking into a black tie event. The dress shirt and the tie were both a gorgeous white; wearing them always elicited a very rational fear of accidental spillage. At twenty-two years old, Alexander was floored that rich people would willingly spend $300 on a suit. He had felt sick to his stomach when he paid for it but the way that the black fabric gently hugged his body had made him feel like a million bucks. 

He tried to tell himself that his most expensive outfit was going a little overboard for this social gathering but, as he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror, he went with it anyway. 

He looked damn good.

John’s place wasn’t far from his own place at all; it was only three stops away on the A line and then five blocks from there. Of course, Alexander already knew this since he had taken that route home every night the week prior. He passed the bench across the street where he used to sit for hours at a time. His earbuds had been connected to a silent iPod as he pretended to read while keeping one eye on John’s apartment complex until his lights went out.

Today, he got to go inside and get a first hand look at John’s home life.

The yapping dog went off when he knocked on the door and Alexander ran a smoothing hand over his ponytail, mentally preparing himself for seeing John in person for the first time that week. John answered the door quickly while holding a tan wiry dog, which was probably the cutest animal that Alexander had ever seen in his entire life. 

“Sorry about Muffin, she-“ John quickly trailed off and his breath hitched slightly when he saw Alexander. He wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not but it still filled him with an odd warm fuzzy feeling. “Wow, okay. You’ve definitely got ‘pretty fancy’ covered.”

“Thank you, so do you,” Alexander responded with a small smile. John’s navy blue suit paired with a white dress shirt and black tie looked wonderful on him and, when Alexander expressed that sentiment aloud, he quickly distracted himself with fixing his dog’s fur. 

“Thanks,” John was smiling but Alexander could hear a touch of pain in his voice. Right. He probably should go easy on the compliments for the time being. “I just have to change Muffin’s water and then we can go. She’s the dog version of Queen of Sheba, she won’t drink water if it’s not fresh. Wanna come in?”

“Sure!” Alexander toed off his shoes at the front door and stepped inside. John’s place was quaint and simple, with wooden floors and a small couch by the door. Alexander opted to a seat at one of the barstools. “I like your place, by the way.”

“Thanks,” John set down Muffin, who had taken licking Alexander’s socks as if he had coated them in bacon grease, and was scrubbing out a plastic pink bowl. Alexander had to press his lips together to keep a giggle from slipping out. “This place had just become available when I got here. Which was good because I didn’t anticipate how hard finding a good place in the city could be. Plus, the rent’s decent and they let me get a dog. I really struck gold.”

“It can be really hard,” Alexander confirmed. “I had to pay to sleep on a guy’s foldout couch for my first six months. You got lucky there.”

“Definitely,” John agreed as he set down Muffin’s fresh water bowl. “What the hell is she doing to you?” 

“I don’t know,” Alexander laughed faintly as he wiggled his toes in his socks. “It tickles though!”

“My dog has a foot fetish,” John mumbled in horror as he bent down to scoop her back into his arms. Alexander couldn’t help but think that they were an incredibly cute pair, especially when she redirected her licks to his cheeks. “No! Stop! Not when you were all over Alexander’s feet.”

“I feel oddly betrayed,” Alexander stage whispered as John squeezed his eyes shut to avoid being poked by Muffin’s nose.

“She doesn’t normally like strangers,” John set the dog down by her water bowl before looking back at Alexander. “Or feet. You should be honored.”

“Thanks, Muffin,” Alexander’s tone was dry, but he made sure to add a teasing smile so that John knew that he didn’t really mind. “Are we good to go?”

“Yeah,” John gave his dog a final scratch down her back before meeting Alexander’s gaze. “Eliza recommended that we take a taxi. Unless you felt like walking 6 miles from the nearest subway stop?”

“Taxi’s fine,” Alexander reassured John quickly as he followed John to the door. “Bye, Muffin. It was a pleasure to meet you. My feet will miss you once they’re stuffed back in these shoes." 

John laughed as he locked the place up and Alexander worked on his laces. He heard a mumbled “weirdo”, but fondness shined through in his smile.

John, as it turned out, was terrible at hailing cabs. That was a gift that Alexander possessed, since he was able to let his naturally pushy side go wild, so watching him continue to fail at it was painful. After the fourth empty cab zipped by them, Alexander rested a pitiful hand on John’s shoulder. 

“I’ve got this,” he insisted and, sure enough, thirty seconds later John was giving the restaurant’s address to a cab driver.

“Come on,” John had lamented after a moment of silence. He glanced sideways at Alexander, who had been busy watching the city zip by. “You called ahead, didn’t you?”

“Oh, Laurens,” Alexander glanced back, letting his lips curve up into a small smirk. “How dare you underestimate me. When I was nineteen and I had just gotten here from Nevis, I got into an umbrella fight with a 225 pound man on a rainy day over a half block taxi ride. The man’s face turned bright red when he saw me get out of the car ten seconds later.”

“That’s a lie,” John laughed, no doubt flooded by the imagery of Alexander having an epic swordfight with a man twice his size.

“Don’t doubt my candor, that story is completely true,” Alexander insisted.

“In that case, that’s pretty hot.” John’s grin was infectious and Alexander was sure that he was secretly relishing in the grin that slipped past his walls and planted itself on his face. “Alexander Hamilton, Umbrella Sensei.”

“That’s the worst thing I’ve ever heard,” Alexander laughed softly. “And trust me, it wasn’t hot. I just started rapidly hitting him in a panic as he was walking towards a taxi and jumped inside. As I was getting in, he slapped me across the face with his own umbrella. It really hurt, I had a bruise across my face for a while. I told everyone that I fell while I was ice skating.” 

“Why didn’t you just walk?” John asked. “Let the giant man take a cab somewhere that wasn’t a ten second drive away.”

“I’d never taken a taxi before, I saw that the thing was empty and got a little overexcited,” Alexander answered simply with a wry smile in John’s direction. “You don’t know this yet, but I have absolutely zero impulse control.” 

“Apparently,” John scoffed softly, his knee bumping gently against Alexander’s leg. Alexander turned his attention back to the window and the rest of the ride was met with silence. 

_Rain was soaking through nineteen-year-old Alexander’s hoodie to the point where the hood part of it was obsolete. The first thing that he’d do after he figured out a way to end Leroy Marks’ life was buy a decent raincoat._

_Alexander had overheard Leroy call the tattoo shop to check for availabilities the night before on a payphone. To the outside eye that wouldn’t seem suspicious but this was his pattern, the three-page letter he got in the mail had explained. A young girl, the daughter of three-page letter, would die by the end of that week and he wouldn’t get his payment unless he did something. After months of quietly following him around the city, he had to act fast.  
_

_When a taxi slowed at the curb and Leroy stepped towards it, reaching in his pocket for his wallet, Alexander may have panicked. His fist tightened around the handle of his umbrella and, before he could stop himself, it had made contact with Leroy’s arm._

_“Oi, what the fuck?” the man had drawled as three more quick whacks made contact with his stomach. The sharp hit to the side of Alexander’s head had almost floored him but he managed to get in and slam the door shut.  
_

_The taxi driver was in hysterics. Alexander’s cheek burned with the contact and he wasn’t sure what was so funny._

_“12th and 3rd Street,” Alexander wheezed out, breaking through the laughter._

_“Are you sure you’ve got that right?” the driver asked. “We’re on 12 th and 3rd is-“_

_“Right there, I know,” Alexander snapped, pointedly not looking out the window at Leroy. He pushed a handful of bills towards the driver. “Quickly, if you don’t mind?”_

_“Okay.” The drive was incredibly short and Alexander hopped out with a quick thanks. He could see the anger flare across Leroy’s face from where he was standing._

_At three o’clock that morning, that same look returned to Leroy’s face when Alexander found him in a back alley. He didn’t look human and Alexander knew that he wasn’t, but he still felt like he was on the verge of throwing up._

_End this one life, page one had read, and your tuition would be paid for in full._

_“You again?” Leroy growled. “You little prick, what do you-“_

_He’s killed ten girls, page two continued, I can’t let my baby girl be his eleventh._

_Alexander quickly raised the gun he carried with him before Leroy could step closer._

_You’d be a hero, page three concluded. Saving my baby’s life will be your legacy._

_Tears prickled in the corners of Alexander’s eyes as the bullet pierced Leroy’s chest and the giant of a man crumbled to the ground like a rag doll._

“Alexander?” John’s voice cut through the silence. His eyes shone with concern and seeing that brightened Alexander’s mood ever so slightly. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Alexander answered with a half smile. “I’m still in complete awe of this city, you know? It’s beautiful.”

“Yeah,” John looked like he wanted to say something else, but he restrained. “I am too. Let’s go inside?” Alexander handed the cab driver some money and got out of the car, John close on his heels.

“Last name, please?” a woman in a sleek black dress requested when they approached the door.

“Laurens.”

“Right this way,” the woman nodded to an open door. Alexander couldn’t help but feel like he was in a never released Disney movie and this was his grand entrance into the royal palace.

_Alexander’s breath hitched as he took off running in the other direction, his hands trembling in the pockets of his hoodie. The gunshot echoed in his brain with each footstep and he didn’t dare to look back. He knew that the asphalt was probably beginning to stain with Leroy’s blood but seeing it for himself would further wreck him. An imaginary hand was squeezing the air out of his lungs and his entire body felt like it was engulfed in flames as he collapsed onto the couch, silent sobs wracking his body. He was exhausted but he didn’t get a wink of sleep that night.  
_

_Perhaps he was going crazy, but he felt like there was a pair of eyes following his every move for the next few days._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was originally going to combine this chapter and the next but it was getting to be too long so the Schuylers' social gathering gets an entire chapter dedicated to it instead of half of one.
> 
> Thank you to those who have been reading this. I'm really excited about this piece and I hope you all feel the same way. It's my first time writing in this style and I'm having a lot of fun with it!
> 
> If you want to yell at me for being so mean too poor Alex (I know, I'm sorry!) you can find me on [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com) or on twitter @linandt0nic :)


	4. The Schuyler Ball

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Anyways, they’re probably the classiest and most intimidating girls in the entire universe. They’re indestructible, I’d be madly in love with them if I was into girls.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!
> 
> I know, I know. I'm so sorry. I've had quizzes, exams, projects, job hunting, computer issues, writer's block, more writer's block, bla bla bla... sadly, this chapter took forever to finally come together. I hope you enjoy this, because I knew that I wanted to do this whole thing since I started this fic but having something in your head and actually writing it don't always necessarily go together.
> 
> Also it's 3am so if you spot any errors, I'm sorry!

“Alexander? Are you okay?”

John’s voice cut through the prickling on the back of Alexander’s neck and quickly put him at ease. He tended to have that effect on him, which was both phenomenal and mildly concerning. 

“Sorry,” Alexander took a sip of the champagne that John (or a waiter, he wasn’t keeping track) must’ve grabbed for him. They were both sitting at a table with gleaming white tablecloths, just hanging out in silence while flocks of people rushed past or danced together. It was probably the classiest party that Alexander had ever been to and, considering all that he’s had to do to track people, that was saying something. “I’m okay. I get like this sometimes; you don’t have to worry.”

“Okay,” John answered slowly, his fingers gently fussing with a napkin. “Well, these people are my friends. Most of them are, anyways. I’m gonna go say hi to them, wanna stay back or come with?” Alexander quickly sat up, but not before downing half of his glass of champagne.

“I’ll come with,” Alexander answered with a smile. John’s face lit up at that; Alexander loved how easy it was to make him happy. “I’m kind of curious to see who’s responsible for all of this.” 

“That would be the Schuylers,” John offered a hand to help Alexander up, which he took graciously. And if neither of them were quite ready to let go, no one could blame them. “They’re sisters and their father is our state Senator. Well, there’s a brother but he’s not here because he’s only six. Anyways, they’re probably the classiest and most intimidating girls in the entire universe. They’re indestructible, I’d be madly in love with them if I was into girls.”

“Hm, I better come up with a line,” Alexander teased as he gently bumped John’s shoulder with his own. Their closeness made him feel safe and he was quickly figuring out that he’d stop at nothing to keep that.

_Friend, Alexander. John’s your friend. That’s what’s best, even if your heart aches a little from beating too fast whenever he smiles at you._

Alexander hated pushing his feelings to the side. It bristled harshly against his nature to work tirelessly to achieve everything he wanted. Sitting on the sidelines just because he was faced with challenges was frustrating. Sure, crushing on the guy that he was supposed to have killed already wasn’t a normal challenge that most people dealt with but every muscle in his body was dying to overcome it. The need to escape his life only grew stronger whenever he and John exchanged casual touches.

But if he looked at it from a job perspective, getting closer to John would help him protect him. No one was going to post ‘I hate John Laurens someone should kill him’ on Facebook so cyberstalking would only give him a list of names to watch. It would be a lie to say that he would be faking feelings, since that line had been blurry since he first saw John’s picture in his mailbox, but maybe he could push his doubts down.

“John Laurens,” a woman that Alexander recognized from Facebook as Angelica Schuyler pulled John into a hug. She was the picture of perfection, with her curly hair perfectly styled into neat ringlets and a pink dress that looked like it cost more than Alexander’s rent brushing against the floor. John had to let go of Alexander’s hand to hug back and, while he’d never actually understood hand holding in the past, it still felt cold and empty. “I haven’t seen your friend around here before.”

“Right,” John broke the hug with a nervous laugh before he turned to Alexander. “This is-“

“I can introduce myself,” Angelica cut in as she gave Alexander a quick once over and held her hand out for a handshake. Alexander could feel his face heat up at the look she was giving him. “My name’s Angelica Schuyler.”

“Alexander Hamilton,” Alexander took her hand graciously, leaning down to kiss the top of her hand gently. 

“Alexander Hamilton,” Angelica repeated, as if she was testing out how his name felt. Alexander gave her a small smile as he straightened up and he felt John’s hand close around his briefly. “Tell me, Mr. Hamilton, where are you from?”

“It’s not important where I came from,” Alexander answered quickly, his smile falling at the question. A different man would’ve been more intimidated by Angelica but, judging by her career choice and Facebook posts, Alexander was starting to feel like he finally met his match. The thought filled his long silenced inner lawyer with excitement. “What’s important is what I want to accomplish. Actually making a difference with my law degree instead of letting it sit on the shelf collecting dust. There’s so much left for me to do if I want to leave behind a legacy. Plant seeds in a garden that’ll grow into something earth shattering in a few years, you know?”

“If you ever need a little help with that,” Angelica’s lips curled up into a half smile as she handed Alexander a business card from her wallet, “my boss, Congressman Washington, is looking for a right hand man. He specifically asked for a young up-and-comer. Call him, tell him I personally recommended you.”

“Wow,” Alexander answered in a hushed tone as he pocketed the card. He wasn’t sure why Angelica would offer him a personal recommendation after only knowing him for ten seconds but he wasn’t going to complain. “Thank you so much.”

“Why is it that I’ve never seen you before?” Angelica changed the subject as she gave him another look. “Because I’d definitely remember you.”

“I’ve only known him a week,” John explained. Alexander felt a gentle hand rest on the small of his back and he had to bite back a smile. A look of understanding flashed in Angelica’s eyes as she looked between the two of them and she gave the pair a genuine smile. Alexander was wondering what was going through her head but, judging by the fact that he almost fell apart at a simple touch, he was sure that she was sensing something 

“I’ll leave you two to talk,” Angelica nodded at them both. “Go find Eliza and Peggy later, they’d be happy to see you again.” At a look in Alexander’s direction, she explained, “They’re my sisters, they’re both wonderful. You’ll love them.” Angelica’s heels clicked on the tile as she went to socialize with another guest and Alexander couldn’t help but smile.

“She’s really cool!” he gave Angelica a quick parting look before he turned his full attention to John.

“She is. But she totally has a thing for you,” John pointed out, which made Alexander’s cheeks flush red again. “That’s why she got all curious about where you’re from.”

“No, she doesn’t,” Alexander answered softly as John pulled him closer, swaying gently to the music. Angelica of all people would’ve seen right through Alexander’s façade. Making a positive difference and everything else that he said to her was something that he didn’t even dare to dream about now.

“Of course she does,” John insisted. “I don’t blame her. She likes guys and you turned into Prince Charming when she introduced herself. It was adorable, why wouldn’t she want you?”

“It wasn’t adorable,” Alexander argued with an eye roll.

“Also, you never mentioned to me that you had a law degree,” John said instead of continuing the conversation on Angelica’s awesomeness or Alexander’s adorableness. Which were both things that Alexander would have been much more excited about talking about. “I thought you were a writer. You were writing a book, remember?”

“I can write,” Alexander shrugged. “Quite well, actually. But I’m not writing a book, I was doodling. I just wanted to sound impressive so I lied.”

“Doodling’s cool,” John answered quickly. “I love drawing.” 

“I suck at it but it helps me think to draw what I’m feeling,” Alexander was a little distracted that John’s hand was still on his back and decided to return the favor by wrapping gentle arms around his neck. “Want to know what I was thinking that day?”

“What was that?” John’s other hand moved to his waist.

“I was praising whoever had the brilliant idea to grind coffee beans into drinks,” Alexander smiled, pulling a soft laugh from John. “Also that the guy with the curly hair a few tables down was really cute and seemed to share my drink taste.” 

“Lafayette is gorgeous but they only like sweet coffee so completely different tastes,” John joked after a moment of contemplating silence. 

“They are, they’re hot,” Alexander agreed with a broad smile. His hold tightened ever so slightly as he tried to draw John closer. “Not who I meant though.” 

“What are you doing?” John whispered. “Did you have too much champagne?”

“No, that’s not it. I freaked out,” Alexander confessed. John’s eyebrows furrowed together and Alexander shot him an apologetic smile. “Which is weird for me, I’m fearless.”

“I may have come on a little strong, it’s okay,” John shrugged with a soft laugh. Alexander couldn’t face John anymore and his gaze fell to the floor. He felt a hand on his shoulder and he wanted nothing more than to take it and never let go. “Are you still freaked out?” 

“Honestly?” Alexander questioned as he met John’s eye. “Incredibly.”

“Alexander,” John said softly, tightening his grip on his shoulder slightly. “I never meant to-“ 

“You didn’t let me finish,” Alexander raised his finger to John’s lips with a playful smile, except he found himself a little hypnotized by them. He could feel a small huff of breath against his skin as John watched him. “I really don’t have a lot to offer except a go get ‘em attitude and a law degree that is literally collecting dust as we speak.”

“I’m a man of simple tastes,” John assured him quickly. Alexander had to laugh at that as he gestured to the party. “I’m here because Eliza Schuyler is one of my dearest friends. And for the free food.”

“I almost forgot about the free food!” Alexander wasn’t sure if he was imagining his stomach growling at the prospect; he’d forgotten to eat that day. “Is it good food?”

“Yes, and we can get some when you finish your thought,” John insisted, resting his hands gently on Alexander’s shoulders. “Seriously, I’m not sure where you’re going with this.”

“Me neither, actually,” Alexander confessed sheepishly. “Except for the fact that there’s a reason why I don’t have a ton of friends.” _Like the fact that you’ve taken countless lives._ “Or a partner, for that matter. I’m sort of a pain in the ass and I have no filter. I tend to upset people with my big mouth and I’ve long since accepted that. But I don’t want that to be my reality anymore, Laurens, I like you a lot. I thought if I turned you down, I wouldn’t have to face losing you later down the road.”

“I know you don’t have a filter,” John said with a small smile. “You told us that your parents are dead and you survived a hurricane over breakfast and shared your hopes and dreams with a stranger. I still think you’re adorable.” Alexander wanted to protest but all he could think about was how relaxing it would be to sit with John for hours with absolutely no worries in the world except counting his freckles. 

Alexander honestly had no idea who initiated the chaste kiss between them. All he knew was that John’s lips tasted like the champagne he’d been drinking earlier and the sparks of electricity emulating off of his fingers, which were now pressing gently against his back.

A cat call and a string of very dirty French words pulled Alexander out of his trance and he remembered that he was at an extremely classy party hosted by the Senator’s daughters. His cheeks flamed as John burst out into laughter. 

“About time!” Hercules’s hand reached to clap Alexander in the back. He had to lock his knees to keep from crashing into John. “Alex, is that you? Long time no see.”

“Where have you been?” Lafayette was on the other side of him before he could explain himself. “Why did you keep us all waiting for so long?”

“I dunno,” Alexander turned to face them. Besides Angelica Schuyler (and her sisters, probably), they were probably the best dressed person at the ball. Even his astronomically expensive suit felt like a set of rags in comparison. “I was faking my death until you found my Facebook.”

“Naturally,” Hercules gave him and John a cheeky smile. “So I think I saw Peggy pull a flask out of her gown and dump it in the fruit punch.”

“That child is my hero,” Lafayette grinned. “Have you met the Schuylers, Hamilton?”

“Just Angelica, who has a crush on him,” John explained quickly.

“She’ll eat you alive,” Hercules probably just meant to elbow Alexander teasingly but he knocked the air out of him instead. “Go for it if John is willing to share.”

“Don’t encourage him,” John gasped, draping a protective arm around his waist. Alexander leaned into his touch with a small smile.

“She doesn’t have a crush on me,” Alexander mentioned after a short period of silence. “Also, John, I was promised food.”

“I want Peggy’s punch,” John said quickly. Hercules must have predicted that, as he had two full cups in his hand and handed one to each of them. “She always uses the good stuff so it’s a classy prank. I’d feel bad but I’m pretty sure her dad was asking for trouble when he named her Margarita.” Alexander downed the contents of the cup, pulling a face when it burned in his throat.

“This is the strongest prank ever,” Alexander laughed after clearing his throat. “I feel like I’m in one of those American high school prom movies. I’ve always wondered, is that a thing here?” 

“It wasn’t at my Catholic school in South Carolina,” John shrugged with a soft laugh. He echoed Alexander and downed the entire thing, scrunching his face up as he swallowed it. It was rather cute, a sentiment that Alexander expressed with a quick peck on the cheek. “Okay. I’m going to find Peggy Schuyler and tell her that I love her.”

“You two are perfect for each other,” Lafayette commented, glancing over at Hercules with a small smile.

“You’re still the alpha couple, don’t worry,” John grinned as he linked his arm with Alexander’s.

“Not for long,” Alexander shot, which drew a whooping cheer from Hercules and a laugh from John. Lafayette straightened their posture and gave Alexander a quick once over with their eyebrow raised.

“Don’t challenge us, _petit homme_ ,” their lips upturned into a small smirk.

“I might be little but I’m scrappy, don’t underestimate me.” Alexander folded his arms to his chest. 

“Goddamn, he fits right in,” Hercules grabbed Lafayette’s shoulder with a grin.

“He wasn’t even intimidated by Angelica fucking Schuyler,” John looked at Alexander with a small smile. “Speaking of Fucking Schuylers, we should find the others. You’ll love them. And I still have to confess my forbidden love to Peggy.”

“I was supposed to finish Eliza’s scarf last week so our paths have officially crossed,” Hercules answered quickly. “Come on, Laf. Let’s go pester Burr.” 

“Bye,” Lafayette’s face lit up at the idea and Alexander felt a little sorry for this Burr. John sighed softly as they left and he looked over at Alexander.

“Damn, I want to pester Burr too,” he stated with a small pout. “Eat fast and don’t hit on the other Schuylers. You couldn’t win them over anyway.”

“Is that a challenge?” Alexander asked with an eyebrow raised.

“If you think you can charm a lesbian and a sixteen-year-old girl, then yes,” John shrugged. Alexander barely registered John’s response since a waiter walked by with a plate of something that smelled good, even though he wasn’t quite sure what it was. He didn’t realize that John wasn’t following him until he had piled on as much of the dish onto his plate as he could fit and he heard a set of giggles behind him and spun to face the two girls looking at him. 

He recognized the other Schuylers, both dressed as elegantly as their older sister. Eliza was in a powder blue dress that hugged her figure and her silky black hair hung on her shoulders.

“There’s not a huge amount of food,” Peggy teased as she eyed Alexander’s plate. “And you didn’t even grab the cookies.” Alexander would have never guessed that the young girl in a pale yellow dress, high ponytail, and curious eyes would be capable of spiking a bowl of punch without her sisters noticing. 

“Cookies?” Alexander’s face lit up at the word, pulling another laugh from Eliza.

“Alexander, right?” she asked with her hand extended, in the same fashion as Angelica. She was more soft spoken than her sisters. “John’s plus one? I’m Elizabeth Schuyler, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” The hitman part of Alexander’s brain told him to introduce himself and politely leave, since the Schuylers weren’t suspects, but he found that he really wanted to talk to them.

“If it takes crashing your party for us to meet, it will have been worth it,” Alexander answered with a smile as he leaned down to kiss her hand.

“I can see why Angel likes him so much,” Peggy mumbled as she set a chocolate cookie on Alexander’s plate. “Speaking of John, where did the Sons of Liberty disappear to?” Alexander tested the mystery dish, which seemed to be some sort of salmon concoction that made his taste buds sing, and raised his eyebrow in response. 

“That’s everyone’s nickname for John and Hercules Mulligan,” Eliza explained. “Big strong guy, booming voice, bright clothes?”

“They went to go pester Burr?” Alexander answered with a small shrug. “I’m sorry. Should I have stopped them?" 

“No. You invited Burr?” Peggy asked, playfully bumping Eliza’s side with her elbow. “Uh, are you crazy? Angelica would flip!”

“Angelica can deal with it,” Eliza answered coolly. “There are enough people here so she doesn’t have to interact with him.” 

“So, Alex,” Peggy started as she poured herself a cup of punch. Alexander wondered if Eliza knew that her underage sister had enough alcohol in her possession to spike the entire bowl. “How are things going with John? He’s really pretty, isn’t he?”

“Peggy!” Eliza chastised as Alexander ran a nervous hand over his hair. “I’m sorry about my sister, she’s-“

“Oh, I just assumed that she saw us a few minutes ago,” Alexander shrugged nonchalantly as he refilled his cup. He didn’t miss Peggy’s smirk as she watched his movements. She was far too obvious about her victory in spiking the punch to hide something as big as hiring a hitman to kill her friend. Luckily for her, Eliza’s attention was quickly pulled from her sister.

“It was nice to meet you, Alexander,” Eliza mumbled quickly, shooting him an almost shy smile as she quickly hurried off. Alexander’s gaze followed her and found that she was talking to a different couple.

“James and Maria Reynolds,” Peggy answered, seeming to read the curiosity on Alexander’s face. The couple had their backs to Alexander so he couldn’t make out their faces, but they both seemed rich. James had an old fashioned fedora to match his suit that seemed to have been pulled from the 1940s and Maria was dressed in a gorgeous red gown.

“You might not want to lurk around your punch bowl,” Alexander suggested softly as he picked up his now nearly empty plate from the table. “Your sisters will catch on."

“Eh,” Peggy pulled a face as she took a sip of her punch. “You should go make sure that Aaron Burr hasn’t put a bullet in your boyfriend’s brain yet.”

“John isn’t my-“ Alexander started, smiling guiltily when Peggy cocked an eyebrow at him. She was probably joking but her comment still put Burr on his radar. “We haven’t had that talk yet.” Peggy gave a small shrug before disappearing, assumedly to go spike something else.

Alexander had to appreciate John’s earlier comment about the Schuylers. They definitely gave off the impression of indestructibility

It didn’t take long for him to locate the three familiar faces, twisted in glee as a fourth shorter man did everything in his power to ignore them. After years of training, Alexander was able to easily pinpoint a face in much bigger crowds. Alexander picked up his drink and made his way over, not sure yet if he’d join in the fun or take pity on the other man. 

“Well, I heard,” John’s voice rang out, his tone teasing as he rested his hands on Burr’s shoulders. No one seemed to notice that Alexander had shown up, but he didn’t mind. Burr seemed to be praying for the floor to suck him up, while the other three were doing their best to make that happen. “you’ve got a special someone on the side, Burr?”

“Is that so?” Lafayette asked, feigning shock. Burr raised his eyebrows and shook his head, his lips pressed in a weak smile.

“What are you trying to hide, Burr?” John’s voice was dripping in curiosity as he gave Burr a quick once over. 

“I should go,” Burr answered quickly, turning away and coming face to face with Alexander. A flicker of confusion shone in his eyes.

“No,” Alexander insisted with a pointed look at the other three. “These guys should go.” John, Hercules, and Lafayette broke off into protests but Alexander was more focused on the weird look that didn’t leave Burr’s face. 

“I’m sorry, who are you?” he asked, eyeing his suit. He did a decent job of hiding it, but Alexander caught the brief impressed look on his face. 

“I’m Alexander Hamilton,” Alexander answered quickly. “And you must be Aaron Burr. Sir.”

“Hey, that rhymes,” Hercules pointed out after a brief moment of silence. “Then again, there are probably a hundred words that rhyme with Burr. Like sure, her, uh… _pervert_.” John and Lafayette added on other words that Alexander didn’t catch.

“Anyways,” Alexander continued with a soft laugh. “Don’t let them get to you. You should’ve brought this girl with you.”

“There isn’t-“ Burr began to protest, but he quickly dropped it at the look on Alexander’s face. He pulled Alexander away from the others and quickly glanced over his shoulder before heaving a soft sigh. “Fine. I don’t know why I’m telling you any of this but there is a girl. And that’s very kind of you to say, but that would not have gone over well.”

“What do you mean?” Alexander asked. “So far, people have been really nice about John and me. Like, we haven’t discussed what our relationship is yet but we did just kiss and-“

“She’s married,” Burr cut him off with a raised hand.

“I see,” Alexander said slowly. “I can see why that could cause complications, of course, but-“

“Angelica Schuyler, one of the hostesses of this party, works for Congressman Washington,” Burr began to explain. “The girl’s husband works for President King. Washington and Senator Schuyler aren’t exactly fans of his.”

“Oh shit,” Alexander mumbled with raised eyebrows. Burr nodded and ran a hand over his head, as if he was fixing his nonexistent hair.

“Yep,” Burr actually smiled at that. He seemed far too calm and collected, considering that he just admitted to having relations with a married woman. Alexander briefly wondered how long it took him to perfect that mask. “That’s exactly what has been playing in my head since I met her. Wish your friends well for me, Alexander.”

“Okay,” Alexander gave him a small smirk. “I’m glad that you conferred with me, Aaron Burr. You have my word that I’ll keep this between us, sir. Have a nice night.” 

“You should stop doing that,” Burr answered dryly. “But have a nice night as well, Alexander.” He departed quickly and Alexander turned to find John, Hercules, and Lafayette staring at him.

“What?” he asked curiously.

“What’d he say?” John asked as he stepped closer to Alexander. Hercules and Lafayette were both leaning in to try to catch any of the gossip. It was fairly obvious that the three of them were a little bit tipsy, presumably from Peggy’s punch.

“Can’t say, I promised,” Alexander gave John an apologetic smile as he rested gentle hands on the sides of his arms. He was met with possibly the saddest pout known to man.

“You’re so dreamy, even Burr fell for your charm,” John laughed softly. “One look into your eyes and we’re all powerless.”

“You’ll want to be sober for this news,” Alexander decided as he looked between the three of them. “So I should probably turn in. Do you want to split a cab?”

“I am sleeping at George’s house,” Lafayette stated with a quick point towards the door. “I asked Martha and she said it was good with her.”

“You’re having a slumber party with our state’s congressman?” Hercules gave a shocked laugh at that. Lafayette nodded casually, as if they were discussing the weather or something equally mundane. “Shit, Laf. The benefits of being a French heir. Which way are you going, Alex?”

“My place is east,” Alexander answered after a quick mental check. He wasn’t planning on stopping at his place; he was sure that there would be something in his PO box detailing how, for reasons unknown, someone was pissed off that John Laurens was still alive.

“Give me something that a normal human can understand,” Hercules shook his hand dismissively, which pulled a sheepish smile from Alexander.

“That way,” he pointed in the general direction. Hercules took a moment to think before he shook his head again.

“Not in the right direction,” Hercules confirmed. “Hey, Laf, am I allowed to crash your sleepover?”

“No,” Lafayette fixed Hercules with a resounding stare and Alexander had to bite back a laugh. He turned to look at John, who smiled back at him. 

“Cab buddies?” Alexander asked, reaching down for John’s hand with a grin. “I’ll pay for my portion of the ride!”

“Only because you’re paying,” John smiled back. “And, now that you mention it, I’m kind of tired.”

“Was this all a ploy for the two of you to go bang?” Hercules asked with an exaggerated groan. Alexander could feel his eyes widen as he snuck a look at John, who had gone red at the accusation.

“I don’t know about Alexander but I’m not a first date kind of guy,” John answered quickly. Hercules and Lafayette turned their attention to Alexander, who shifted uncomfortably. He usually didn’t even wait until a first official date, since sex had only ever served as a temporary distraction that gave him something good to focus on for a while.

“I invited you to split the fare too, remember?” Alexander added with a soft laugh. “As fun as a foursome sounds, you’re all drunk and I’d feel creepy. Besides, I’m not the type of guy who invites his friends to watch him have sex.”

“Actually, you seem like you are,” Lafayette mumbled with a soft laugh. Hercules gasped and gave his partner a congratulatory high five. “He’s… how you say? What’s the word in English? There’s a musical about boots.”

“Kinky? And that’s the most stereotypical gay thing you’ve ever said.” Hercules supplied with a large grin at the couple. Alexander felt his face go red as John snuck a glance at him. “Oh my god. He’s blushing, he totally is.”

“Takes one to know one,” Alexander answered with a small smirk in Lafayette’s direction, keeping his voice steady to contrast with the flames burning on his cheeks. He could feel John’s hand tighten around his and he planted a quick peck on his cheek.

“You’re not allowed to picture him like that,” John stated protectively as his arm weaved around Alexander’s waist.

“Right, because that’s your job,” Hercules shot back as he mirrored John’s movements. Lafayette’s posture instinctively relaxed at their boyfriend’s touch. “Go catch your cab, Laurens.” He pulled the two of them into a quick, bone crushing hug and Alexander wheezed as the breath was squeezed out of him. It may have been a little tighter than was comfortable but he still couldn’t deny that being so close to another person pulled at his heart. He simultaneously wanted to run away and melt in Hercules’s strong embrace.

“We’re seeing you around?” Lafayette asked with a tentative gaze at Alexander.

“Yeah, definitely!” he answered with a smile. They grinned back and gave Alexander and John each a quick peck on the cheek. Alexander felt John’s hand brush gently on his arm. “So we should get going.”

“Have fun,” Hercules smiled. Lafayette leaned in to mumble something in his ear, which earned them a harsh slap on the arm and a reprimanding “pervert!” They started laughing about something, but Alexander was too far away to catch the joke. He gave a quick parting smile to Angelica, who was talking to a group of guys, as he left.

“Don’t be a stranger, Alexander!” she called back. John rolled his eyes fondly (or at least Alexander _hoped_ it was fond) as he took his wrist and brought him outside.

“She will track you down and drag you into her office for an interview if you don’t call her,” John warned as he looked down the street for a taxi.

“Don’t worry!” Alexander answered with a grin. “First thing tomorrow morning, I’ll-“ he watched as the taxi drove by and huffed a sigh. “Seriously? You’ve learned nothing from me. Why do I even let you try?” He bumped past John and waved frantically at a cab, smirking in victory as it pulled up to the curb. John threw his hands up in defeat, but Alexander could see that he was trying his best to hide a smile.

“Tomorrow’s Saturday,” John reminded him after they both got into the cab.

“I know, I’m not an idiot. What’s your point?” Alexander raised an eyebrow in question. He rattled off the street corner by the post office to the driver, who shrugged before starting to drive. 

“Please don’t tell me that you’re homeless,” John wrapped an arm tightly around Alexander’s shoulders. Normally, this sort of casual intimacy made him feel almost claustrophobic but it was kind of nice to just lean his head on John’s shoulder. He could smell the coconut of his shampoo and it was comforting.

“Right, because I downgraded from a fold out couch to a cardboard box,” Alexander scoffed, his gaze tracing over John’s profile. A curl was gently brushing against Alexander’s cheek and he found that it sort of tickled. In a good way, of course.

“I have a buddy up in Queens that has been looking for-“

“I’m going to stop you right there,” Alexander sat up quickly and held up a hand. The fact that he couldn’t tell if John was joking or not was concerning, to say the least. He reveled in John’s pout and his sad gaze towards his now-empty shoulder. “I have a place. I just have to run some errands so I’m getting dropped off a little farther away. Besides, I once went to Queens on a dare in college and I’m still recovering.” Of course, that part was true but there was also the fact that, if John knew where he lived, he could make impromptu visits. That was a thing, right?

“Jesus,” John laughed. “That’s the most dramatic thing I’ve ever heard in my life. Including every word from Lafayette’s mouth. Now, come back here. I miss you.” Alexander couldn’t help but smile as he rested his head gently on John’s shoulder. 

“Fine,” he answered, watching as John grinned back at him. “But only because your hair smells fantastic.” John laughed softly at that, his shoulder shaking under the side of Alexander’s head.

Alexander normally hated the quiet. Chaos kept him from being alone with Leroy Marks and the countless other voices condemning him non stop in his head. He did well with chaos; he could make sense of noise. The quiet had always remained a mystery to him. However, he found that he enjoyed letting his eyes fall closed as coconut scented curls tickled his nose (John had made a point to toss his hair in Alexander’s face after his comment) and his shoulder shifted as he took slow, content breaths against him. John must’ve recognized the significance of the moment, because he tried to stay as still as possible and didn’t utter a single word. 

He had almost fallen asleep when the taxi lurched to a stop.

“Thank you,” Alexander handed the cab driver some money and rubbed at his face, hoping that John hadn’t noticed the sleepiness in his eyes yet. He gave John a quick peck on the lips and scrunched his face slightly to keep a smile from forming as the taxi zipped off and John waved goodbye.

People rarely checked their mail at night, so Alexander had a lot more privacy when checking his. He wasn’t surprised to find a rather thick envelope; he figured someone would be upset and threaten to kill him over the fact that John was still alive. Those letters always made Alexander laugh and he was tempted to keep a scrapbook of them, or at least write back a long response that stated ‘ _if you think you could kill me, why the hell would you pay me so much money to kill the guy (or girl) instead of doing it yourself?’_ The envelope was tucked in the pocket of his expensive dress pants and he walked home with a small bounce in his step, even though he knew he was in trouble. 

He’d choose trouble over shedding John’s blood any day.

He was almost tempted not to open the letter but, if there was any actual danger to John’s life (besides himself), he’d feel awful. The envelope was freshly sealed and full of pictures, so Alexander was beginning to wonder if it was another hit. His stomach twisted when he realized what he was looking at.

His own face. Dancing with John. Taking Angelica’s business card. Introducing himself to Eliza and Peggy. Talking to Burr. Joke-fighting with Hercules and Lafayette. These photos were all much higher quality and each one had small holes poked into everyone’s eyes, as if with a push pin. The final picture was of his first kiss with John, their arms wrapped tightly around each other.  Alexander could see that he was almost floating on cloud nine in the photo, which felt like a punch in the gut now. ‘DO YOUR JOB OR I WILL’ was scribbled in the same handwriting in red sharpie, this time accompanied with a crude smiley face.

Alexander always figured that someone would eventually kill him, but the thought had always given him sick comfort. Dying would be cathartic; it was the least he deserved. But John didn’t deserve to die. The Schuylers didn’t deserve to have a creepy stalker taking photos at their party. Hercules, Lafayette, and even Burr didn’t deserve to have needles pushed into photos of them like twisted 2D voodoo dolls. Maybe Alexander still deserved to die, but he hated that his life was being threatened when he finally found something worth living for. He had to do something to stop this, fast. 

Alexander spent the rest of the night with tears blurring his vision as he alternated from dry heaving to staring at his phone with his finger hovered over the ‘emergency call’ button.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ICYMI:  
> [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com)  
> twitter: @linandt0nic  
> I'd love to talk about whatever you all want haha


	5. Chicken Noodle and Subway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alexander sent him his address before glancing around in dismay. His place was a mess, sure, but he was more concerned with the pictures of crossed out faces scattered all over his desk. As a general rule, he never had people over just for that reason, and now he wasn’t quite sure what to do with them all.
> 
> He saw his shredder in the corner of the room and was hit with a crazy idea.

Alexander had felt the room get brighter as the sun rose but, unlike every other time sleep escaped him the entire night, he didn’t bother to watch the sunrise through his window. He didn’t call 911, even though ever fiber of his being was screaming at him to do something. A police investigation may lead to quicker answers, but at what cost? He’d end up in jail or worse, and he couldn’t bear putting John through something so horrific.

At 9:00, his phone buzzed with a hopeful _‘coffee?_ _:)'_ from John. The idea of coffee sounded appealing, but the concerned look that John would give him if he saw him like this did not.

 **-John Laurens-**  
Alexander: I’m not feeling so great but maybe we can grab something later  
**John:** oh no… I could bring you something?  
**Alexander:** It’s okay, I can just grab something nearby when I feel a little better  
**John:** do you like soup?  
**Alexander:** Everyone likes soup, John. But really, it’s okay.  
**John:** I’m bringing you some. I’ve got chicken noodle, tomato, and clam chowder  
**Alexander:** …chicken noodle  
**John:** great, text me your address and I’ll be there asap

Alexander sent him his address before glancing around in dismay. His place was a mess, sure, but he was more concerned with the pictures of crossed out faces scattered all over his desk. As a general rule, he never had people over just for that reason, and now he wasn’t quite sure what to do with them all.

He saw his shredder in the corner of the room and was hit with a crazy idea.

The pictures of him from the party were tucked away safely in his desk drawer, but he watched as the shredder sucked up each photo of his past victims. The grainy photo of John was the last one he shredded and he had to shut his eyes as he put that photo through. When he opened his eyes, it was indistinguishable in the pile to the other photos of everyone that Alexander spent countless sleepless nights justifying why the world was a better place without them. Guilt bubbled up in his chest and he tried to counter it with a pained breath. Before the feeling could really settle, there was a harsh knock on the door. He tied his hair in a bun to make himself look slightly more presentable and went to go answer the door.

Alexander had never seen John with his hair down, but he found that the look suited him. His cheeks were a little flushed from riding his bike over and it made his freckles stand out even more. A Walmart bag hung off his red plaid clad shoulder. Alexander wasn’t sure if he’d forgotten how handsome the guy was or if his sleep deprivation just made everything seem brighter. He had the overwhelming urge to kiss him before remembering that he was supposed to be sick.

“Shit, Alex,” John’s voice was purely sympathetic and it made an uneasy feeling settle in Alexander’s stomach. Maybe he should’ve thrown some cold water in his face or at least looked in a mirror before he answered the door.

“I changed my mind, this was a bad idea,” Alexander joked halfheartedly as he started to close the door. John put his hand out to catch it and stepped inside, glancing around the apartment. 

“I’ll start the soup,” John stated definitively, his gaze turning to the kitchen. 

“You didn’t go to Walmart just for me, did you?” Alexander stepped past him to get the pot.

“No, the bag just fit in my basket better than the cans did,” John grinned as he turned on the stove. “Sit down and stay out of my way and prepare to get blown away by my masterpiece. It’ll take your taste buds on a wild adventure.” 

“It’s Campbell’s chicken noodle soup,” Alexander pointed out as he took a can out of the bag and looked it over. He hoped that John wasn’t planning on getting creative and didn’t open any of his cabinets, since the only ingestible things that he had stocked were bread, an apple, and cheap liquor.

“Good point.” He could hear the cheeky grin in John’s voice. “My specialty is definitely Kraft mac and cheese. Didn’t I tell you to plant your ass in one of those chairs over there?”

“Well, not one of those chairs _specifically_ but-“ Alexander pressed his lips together at the look that John was giving him and quickly sat down.

“So is that why you left the Schuylers early?” John asked after a few moments of stirring the soup. “Weren’t feeling well?” 

“No, I’m just tired today,” Alexander corrected quickly. “I was fine, I just didn’t get a lot of sleep. Speaking of which, do you have Eliza’s phone number?”

“Yeah,” John answered, turning his full attention towards Alexander. “Why?”

“I-“ Alexander wasn’t about to admit that he was going to ask if she had seen anyone suspicious at their party or try to weasel his way into getting a guest list. He could safely eliminate everyone in the photos (Hercules, Lafayette, the Schuyler sisters, and Burr) but there were probably at least a hundred other people at that party. He realized a little too late that John was still expecting an answer. “I just wanted to thank her for letting me come to the party, that’s all. She’s never met me before; she could’ve been more exclusive.”

“She volunteers at the orphanage on the weekends, I’ll give you her number on Monday if you meet us for breakfast,” John smiled fondly and Alexander wasn’t sure if it was directed towards Eliza’s charitable work, Alexander’s idea to call her, or the idea of breakfast. “Besides, she knew who you were.”

“Really?” Alexander asked with a teasing smile, even though he was unsure how to process that information. “What, did you gush about me when you were asking for a plus one to the party?” 

“She meets me for lunch during the week so she might’ve heard something before that,” John confessed. Alexander raised an eyebrow as he got up to get bowls and spoons before they each scooped some soup for themselves.

“You didn’t tell her about how bitchy I was, did you?” Alexander asked.

“Thought it was just RBF,” John answered with a quick peck on Alexander’s cheek. Alexander rolled his eyes and went back to the table, sipping gently on the soup. He didn’t realize how hungry he was before this moment. “One look at your stupid, dorky smile and no one could ever think you were bitchy.” 

“You really know how to sweet talk a guy,” Alexander answered dryly as he tried to rub the sleepiness out of his eyes. John laughed softly and took the seat next to him.

“Tired?” John bumped his shoulder gently as Alexander was finishing up his bowl of soup. He may have burned his tongue from eating it so quickly, but he couldn’t be bothered. “Let’s get you to bed, okay?” Sleep sounded nice, but Alexander had already felt powerless the entire day. Adding his nightmares to the mix would only double the feeling.

“You came all this way, I’ll go to bed later,” Alexander whispered as he pressed a series of quick kisses along John’s jawline. He had much more practice with dealing with whatever resulted from those actions than he did with being taken care of.

“We can do that,” John tilted his head away and rested a hand on Alexander’s chest to hold him back, “after you get some rest. You look like a zombie in the Walking Dead.”

“Keep going with the dirty talk, Laurens,” Alexander huffed out a soft laugh. John must’ve realized that his hand was still on Alexander’s chest and quickly pulled it away, resting it awkwardly on his lap.

“Go to bed,” John shot back as he finished his soup as well. Alexander picked up both of the bowls and put them in the sink; he’d deal with them later.

“You should go home,” Alexander turned towards John. “There’s not much to do here except watch TV, drink shit liquor that’ll just make you miss Peggy, and play poker with Crackhead Craig next door.”

“Nice try,” John stepped closer and lightly shoved Alexander out of the kitchen. It wasn’t with enough force to make him do anything except take a quick step forward to catch his balance. “I’m not leaving until I know you’ve gone to bed. Give me a tour of your room.”

“Sounds suggestive,” Alexander raised an eyebrow with a small smirk. John grabbed a roll of newspaper from the counter and whacked Alexander’s arm harshly. “Ow! You’re the worst caretaker ever!” John started batting his face, his shoulders, the top of his head, his stomach, the sides of his legs, and anywhere else he could reach with the newspaper until Alexander became a giggling mess.

“Go. To. Bed.” John punctuated each word with a new tap and Alexander raised his hands in defense.

“Fine, fine,” he breathed out in between fits of laughter. He felt like he hadn’t laughed this hard in his entire life and, frankly, it was exhausting. “Jesus. I’ll go. But I don’t even have a _bed_ bed.”

“What do you mean?” John lowered the newspaper and fixed him with that concerned look that made him want to crawl in a hole. 

“I don’t sleep well in beds,” Alexander defended. “In Nevis, I just slept in the broom closet. Which was sort of a metaphor for my college career, I guess, but I still keep the tradition of sleeping in a literal closet alive even though I’m out of the figurative one.”

“You sleep in a closet?” John repeated. He didn’t even laugh at Alexander’s joke, which made the hole sound even more tempting. “Who are you, Harry Potter?” 

“Harry Potter slept in a cupboard under the stairs,” Alexander corrected. “Completely different.”

“Alexander,” John took a deep breath and rested his hands gently on the sides of his arms. “why did you sleep in a closet?” 

“My dad made me,” Alexander explained with a sad smile. “I mean, it made sense. We were poor and Junior, my brother, he was older so he got the actual bedroom. But even when my dad left, I still slept there. Well, except when my mom and I both got fevers when I was twelve and stayed in her bed until she died. That whole experience sort of ruined beds for me.”

John stared at him in silence for a long moment before pulling him into a tight hug. Alexander wasn’t quite sure where any of that was coming from. He definitely wasn’t complaining as he wrapped his arms around John equally tight, sighing softly.

“Let’s go to your closet then, okay?” John whispered, brushing his lips gently against the side of Alexander’s head. Alexander regretfully broke the hug and took John’s hand, leading him to their room. His stomach twisted at John’s reaction, the look that he gave the desk that took over the entire room, the realization when he saw the old futon stuffed in the closet.

“I get agoraphobic when I’m sleeping,” Alexander explained before John could form the question that was dancing on his face. At the confused look, he added, “Fear of open spaces. Basically the opposite of claustrophobia.”

“Suit yourself,” John kissed him chastely and was out of reach before Alexander could react. “Rest up, you fucking weirdo. You really need it.”

“Goodnight!” Alexander smiled as sweetly as he could muster as he curled up on the futon. He fought to keep his eyelids from fluttering closed as John stepped closer and placed another kiss to his forehead. 

“Goodnight,” he echoed. Alexander fell asleep before he could see if John hung around or if he left after that.

When Alexander woke up, the sun was just beginning to set. He got up and looked around his apartment to make sure that John had gone home before grabbing the suit he had worn yesterday. Angelica’s business card was a little wrinkled but it was still in the pocket of the jacket. He dialed the number and was fully intending to just leave a voicemail when someone picked up the line.

“Angelica Schuyler. How can I help you?”

“Oh, hi,” Alexander took a deep breath before answering. “I wasn’t expecting- it’s Alexander. Hamilton, from the party.”

“Hey, Alexander,” Angelica sounded much more chipper when she realized who was calling. “I was expecting you to call as soon as we opened, actually.”

“I was going to but I was busy,” Alexander said, trying to make his day sound a lot more impressive than eating soup with John and sleeping. “Anyways, I wasn’t expecting to actually reach you! Since it’s the weekend and all.”

“Weekend? Never heard of it,” Angelica joked, pulling a small laugh from Alexander. “So to what do I owe the pleasure?” 

“I was calling to,” Alexander paused to stifle a yawn. That would’ve been incredibly awkward. “discuss what we talked about at the party?”

“When you put it like that, it sounds illegal,” Angelica’s tone dropped. “But I talked you up to Washington. He asked Lafayette if they knew you and they said you were crazy smart. He’s in DC right now and he said he can meet with you via Skype at some point this week, but the earlier the better.” 

“Monday morning early?” Alexander asked quickly. He didn’t have anything scheduled for the foreseeable future (except killing John, which he was bagging).

“Let me-“ he could hear Angelica flipping through a notebook. “Sure. Does 10:30 work for you?” 

“10:30 is wonderful!” Alexander grinned. “That’s perfect. Thank you so much for this opportunity, Angelica.”

“I’m doing this because we’re totally understaffed and I’m afraid that Washington will hire Aaron Burr if we don’t find anyone, it has nothing to do with you,” Angelica answered dismissively but Alexander thought he heard a faint smirk in her tone. “Do you want to meet Eliza, a friend of ours, and me for dinner tonight?”

“Oh, I-“ Alexander started. He still had a decent amount of hitman money (including the deposit for killing John) so he could afford to dine with the Schuylers. The problem was that he only owned one nice outfit and he had just worn that the night before. He was sure that wearing it two nights in a row would be some rich person taboo.

“If you ever make up your mind,” Angelica stated after a moderate pause and Alexander realized that she never answered her question, “we’ll be at Subway on 39th Street.” 

“Oh,” Alexander laughed at that. “I can do Subway. I’ll be there soon.”

“See you then,” Angelica hung up before Alexander could echo the sentiment back to her. He set his phone on the counter and glanced around his apartment with a small sigh.

That morning had been a close call and he was lucky that John wasn’t a snoopier person. He was sure that the police would’ve shown up at his door if John had found the photos from the party and the envelope full of cash. He didn’t feel right about shredding the pictures in case he ever needed to turn them in to the police to protect John, whereas the cash was literally all the money he had left unless he got the job with Washington. If anyone found the money, he could lie about not trusting banks (which would be ironic, since he worked in a banking and financing firm when he had tried to lead a normal life).

He had to bury the evidence before he could truly move on, and his PO box seemed to be the perfect place to do that. He grabbed his coat, stuffed the cash in one pocket and carefully placed the photos in the other, and locked up the door behind him. Each step closer to the post office made his stomach twist, but this was something that he had to do. Perhaps by locking the final piece of that life away, it could all be over once he was sure John was safe. He could finally find peace.

He took a deep breath as he unlocked his box, preparing for the worst, but thankfully it was empty. He glanced over his shoulder before pulling the two envelopes out of his pockets and locking them in.

There was one more thing that he had to do before he could eat a peaceful dinner with Angelica and Eliza. He pulled out his phone and opened his messages.

 **-John Laurens-**  
Alexander Hamilton: I got an interview with Washington on Monday morning! I’m meeting Angelica and Eliza for dinner now  
**John Laurens:** no way! you got the interview? that’s awesome, congrats  
**Alexander Hamilton:** Thanks! Maybe we could grab drinks a little later or something?  
**John Laurens:** I wish but I’m designing a website for the law firm that burr works at and his asshole boss just bumped up the deadline to tonight. I’m locked in a room with burr until I get it done  
**Alexander Hamilton:** Ooo, good luck…  
**John Laurens:** thanks. we’ll celebrate soon if I don’t get sued for breaking burr’s nose, he’s explaining all this law stuff to me. so glad I didn’t go to law school  
**Alexander Hamilton:** Hey, being a lawyer is fun! You get paid to argue with people!  
**John Laurens:** that should be your new catchphrase

Alexander was bummed that he wouldn’t be able to see John, but at least now he knew he was safe. Maybe not happy, since he was stuck with Burr, but he wasn’t in any imminent danger as long as he wasn’t alone.

During the cab ride to Subway, he felt like a giant weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. He couldn’t explain it, since he hadn’t done anything yet, but getting those photos out of his room helped to distance himself from the problem. He could actually come up with a plan to help John now without having to worry about himself as well. 

Angelica and Eliza were already at a table with their sandwiches, talking to a third girl that Alexander recognized from the party as Maria Reynolds. He walked up to the table with a friendly smile, and Eliza was the first one to notice him.

“Alexander, you made it,” she greeted.

“I’d never pass up an opportunity to eat with the wonderful Schuylers,” he took her hand and gave it a soft squeeze. Angelica raised an eyebrow at his action while Maria glanced down at her buzzing phone before looking back up. “Hi. I’m Alexander, by the way.”

“Maria,” she gave him a small smile. She looked perfectly put together, with thick winged eyeliner and firetruck red lips. He hadn’t noticed her baby bump at the party, which she put a protective hand over as soon as she saw him look down at it.

“I’m going to get my sandwich, I’ll be right back,” Alexander gave them one last polite smile before heading off to wait in line. He loved Subway, especially the fact that the teenager making his sandwich had trouble getting it closed with the multitude of toppings and condiments he put on it.

When he got back, Angelica and Eliza were chatting happily. Maria seemed to be doing her best to keep up while occasionally typing out a quick text but Alexander recognized the look in her eye. It was the same way he felt all the time; trapped. Eliza and Maria would send each other quick doe-eyed smiles while Angelica was talking about what a grade-A asshole Aaron Burr’s boss was and Alexander recognized those looks too. 

“Jesus,” Angelica looked at his sandwich with a soft huff. “Did you try to fit the entire supply into there?” 

“I figured I should get my vegetable intake while I’m out,” Alexander shrugged before taking a bite of the sandwich. Eliza giggled and glanced over at Maria, who was looking back down at her phone and missed the entire thing.

“You’re an idiot,” Angelica mumbled, sipping on her iced tea. “So, Alexander. You’re a guy, right?”

“Might have to double check that for me,” Alexander gave her a small smile after he swallowed his food.

“Idiot. Answer this for me then. Why are you all such overprotective dicks?” Angelica shot a glance towards Maria.

“He just worries about me,” Maria whispered defensively. Eliza quickly rested a hand on her shoulder. “Especially since we found out about the baby.”

“How far along are you?” Alexander asked, trying to change the subject for her sake. If Maria was anything like him, she’d start lashing out if Angelica kept backing her into a corner.

“19 weeks,” she answered, a genuine smile forming on her face. “We found out that she’s a girl a few days back.”

“No way!” Eliza pulled Maria into a hug and she visibly relaxed under her touch. That whole dynamic looked a little too familiar to Alexander. “That’s so cool. Have you thought of names yet?”

“Susan,” Maria answered, her hand tracing over her stomach gently after Eliza broke the hug. “After my mother."

“Pretty,” Eliza reached over to steal a sip of Maria’s drink and Alexander could see that she was fighting a smile.

“Are they-?” Alexander started to ask but Angelica cut off his train of thought with a raised hand and a quick head shake.

“I’ll explain later,” she mumbled as Maria broke off a piece of Eliza’s cookie and got a smudge of chocolate on her formerly perfectly made up lips.

“Wait, Angelica, I have a different question,” Alexander leaned a little closer so Eliza and Maria wouldn’t overhear him. Not that they were paying any attention to him but he still felt like he should be careful. “Did you hire a photographer for the party?”

“No,” Angelica furrowed her eyebrows and reached up to fix one of her braids. “Why would we do that?”

“I don’t know, I thought I saw someone taking pictures so I thought I’d ask,” Alexander shrugged.

“Weird,” Angelica looked back at Eliza and Maria and rolled her eyes, although Alexander caught a faint smile. “Did either of you see anyone with a camera at the party? Alexander is being weird.”

“No,” Eliza glanced at Maria for a moment, questions dancing across her face, before looking back at them.

“I didn’t see anything,” Maria added. “That’s a little creepy, though. Was the person with the camera taking pictures of people?”

“If they were, we all looked phenomenal so we should ask for copies,” Angelica joked, bumping Alexander’s side with a soft laugh. Alexander laughed softly, although he doubted that Angelica would want a series of pictures detailing everyone he talked to at the party.

“I don’t know,” Alexander shook his head and finished up his sandwich. “It was probably nothing. Maybe they were taking pictures of the chandelier, it was gorgeous.”

“Who knows,” Eliza smiled gently. “Hey, speaking of the party. How are things with you and John?” She glanced over at Maria and added, “Peggy saw them kiss at the party and Angelica said they were all touchy feely before.”

“Wait, John Laurens?” Maria asked, smiling at Alexander. “He's sweet. With the ponytail and the freckles, right?”

“The adorable freckles,” Alexander corrected. He saw Angelica roll her eyes in his peripheral vision and cleared his throat awkwardly. “I think it’s pretty good, actually. Considering that it’s still really new and all. Like, literally a day old. He’s really sweet, he brought me food this-” Alexander’s phone buzzed in his pocket and he sucked in a quick breath and answered it without checking his caller ID. “Maybe this is him and he’s psychically able to tell that I’m gushing about him. Hello?”

“Hi, this is the New York City Fire Department,” the voice answered. Definitely not John. “I’m afraid there was a fire at your place.”

“They are honestly adorable,” Eliza grinned at her sister at the same time the fireman was talking. “John is definitely happier than I’ve ever seen him.”

“Oh my god,” Alexander felt his stomach drop as he raised a hand to silence the conversation and Eliza’s smile quickly fell. “Is it bad?”

“I’m afraid so,” the fireman’s voice was grim. “I’m going to need you to come here so we can talk in person.”

“Why?” Alexander’s voice rose about an octave. “Is anyone hurt? Oh my god.”

“No one is hurt, we were able to get your neighbors out before any serious damage was done,” the fireman answered. Alexander wasn’t all that concerned about his neighbors; he’d immediately pin it on one of them if he wasn’t currently being stalked. “What’s concerning is that the fire has multiple points of origin. So we’re thinking it could be-“

“Arson,” Alexander finished in a hushed whisper. The girls all shared concerned looks. “I’ll be over there as soon as possible. Thank you.” He hung up and stood up quickly, his chair toppling backwards behind him. “I’m so sorry, but I have to go. There’s a fire at my place.”

“Oh my god,” Eliza gasped as she quickly went to pick up the chair. “Is it bad?”

“Yeah,” Alexander sighed as he ran his hand over his face. “I really have to go.” 

“Do you want a ride?” Angelica asked him quickly but Alexander shook his head.

“No, I’m just going to take a cab,” Alexander huffed a soft laugh. “When I’m stressed, I get mean. I don’t want to make you deal with it.”

“Here,” Maria handed him a few bills before folding her hands against her baby bump. “For the cab.”

“That’s sweet, Maria, but-“

“Take it,” she insisted softly. “Please, just. Take it.” Alexander nodded and gave her a tiny smile.

“Okay. Thanks.” He dashed out of the Subway and took a steadying breath. He couldn’t sit on his hands anymore. If the photographer was willing to burn an empty apartment, who knows what he could do to him next? Or worse, to John? This ended now.

His hands trembled as he dialed a new number and he brushed a strand of hair out of his face. He took another deep breath as he heard the dial tone drone on and was ready to throw his phone at the building when someone picked up.

“Hamilton?” the breathy voice answered, a little irritated. “What the hell? What do you want?”

“James,” he answered, cursing his voice for coming out all shaky. “Can we meet? I- I need your help.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! So you can find me on [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com) and twitter @linandt0nic if you wanna cry about Anthony Ramos because I've literally been doing that all day haha


	6. Hidden Cameras

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Do your job or I will? What does that mean?”
> 
> “Whoever it is is mad at me because John is on my hit list and I haven’t killed him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This surprisingly early update is sponsored by restlessness on Saturday because I was so proud of Lin. He was AMAZING on SNL and I just... I love him so much. Everyone is already incredibly sick of me talking about SNL and it's only Monday.

Alexander wasn’t exactly fond of tea. President George King’s campaign ads, where he would stare unblinkingly at the camera while a kettle sang sharply in the background, burned an association into his brain and now he couldn’t look at the stuff without seeing his piercing blue eyes.

Thomas Jefferson, as it turned out, loved the stuff and was on his third mug, and that was just since Alexander had showed up. It was rather late, since Alexander had to stop at his place to speak to the firemen and make a quick stop at the post office. James had told him to meet at their pointlessly massive house (“Seriously?” was the first thing out of Alexander’s mouth when James Madison opened the door. “Are you compensating for something, Jefferson?”), so his call of desperation was about a hundred times more embarrassing. 

“Are you going to tell us why you called?” Madison called from the kitchen as he stirred a bowl of macaroni and cheese. Alexander knew from rooming with the guy his entire freshman year of college that he was lactose intolerant.

“He’s still making eyes at me, Madi,” Jefferson responded, not taking his eyes off of Alexander. Explaining everything to Madison would be bad enough, but Jefferson still had the same pompous look that he did when he first met the guy, when Madison stumbled over introductions when Alexander had come back to the dorm to find them making out. “I think he’s realizing that his burning hatred towards me was just sexual tension.”

“I have a boyfriend,” Alexander answered, even though the fact that he and John hadn’t officially had that talk yet was still hanging over his head.

“Whatever. At least we know something that’ll keep you quiet now,” Jefferson grabbed his phone and typed while mumbling “note to self: fuck Hamilton to get him to shut up.” 

“Madison, Jefferson wants to fuck me!” Alexander called. Madison reappeared from the kitchen with a bowl of macaroni and cheese and handed it over to Jefferson.

“Both of you are still immature college students,” he stated as he took a seat next to his fiancé. “Can you tell us why you called, Hamilton? Otherwise, we can’t help.”

“I’d rather just talk to you,” Alexander shot another glare at Jefferson. “I don’t think he could help me anyways.” 

“I’m a judge,” Jefferson argued. “If anyone could help you, it would be me. Spit it out.”

“You’re Judge Adam’s bitch,” Alexander snapped, which made Jefferson’s eyebrows shoot up until they were almost buried in his hair. “But fine. I guess-“ There was a knock on the door and Alexander furrowed his eyebrows.

“Shit,” Madison cursed as he stood up. “I forgot that I was supposed to meet with Aaron to discuss our case.”

“You told Burr where we live?” Jefferson asked, his voice softening in horror.

“Wait, Aaron Burr?” Alexander was equally horrified, and it was never a good thing when he agreed with Jefferson on something. 

“He’s a lawyer, maybe he can help you,” Madison gave the pair a tight smile as he went to open the door. “Hi, Aaron." 

“Hello, James,” Aaron Burr had a neatly organized folder in his arms and straightened his posture when the door swung open. “I’m glad you were able to meet with me tonight, I- Alexander? Judge Jefferson?”

“Aaron Burr, sir,” Alexander stood up quickly, hoping that Burr didn’t notice his hands trembling in nerves. “John said you were at the office with him.”

“Oh, did your boyfriend lie to you?” Jefferson gasped, disinterestedly typing out a text and crossing one leg on top of the other. Alexander hoped that it wasn’t another dumb ‘note to self’.

“Laurens is with Lee now,” Burr stated calmly as he gave Madison the folder. “He has the final say on the website.”

“I can help you in a bit,” Madison took the folder. “You can stick around and offer advice to Hamilton if you want about… frankly, I’m not sure.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Alexander stated quickly. He wasn’t sure he could trust Aaron Burr to keep something so big from John. He doubted that they were much more than acquaintances, but the fact that Madison and Jefferson had never met John made the decision to seek out their help much easier.

“Then it’s settled,” Burr answered as he took a seat next to Jefferson, who actually visibly wrinkled his nose in distaste. “What seems to be the problem, Alexander?”

“Someone burned down my house,” Alexander answered, pulling at the sleeve of his jacket absently. “I talked to the firemen, they think it’s arson.”

“Are they launching an investigation?” Burr asked quickly. 

“Who do you think would burn down your place?” Madison asked, his fingers drumming against the coffee table that Jefferson’s bowl and his mug sat on.

“Me?” Jefferson suggested. “I’d totally burn down Hamilton’s place.” Madison glanced at him wearily, while Burr just looked confused. 

“I don’t know exactly who it was,” Alexander started, his thumb tracing over his pocket gently. “But I might have a theory.”

“Is your theory Thomas?” Madison sighed.

“No,” Alexander held a hand to cut Jefferson off before he could comment. “I need to show you guys something, okay? Burr, you’re about to see why you should’ve left when I tried to give you an out.”

“Great,” Burr gave an obviously fake smile to the group. “Just do it.”

“Okay,” Alexander dropped the envelope onto the table. Madison picked it up after a moment and flipped through the photos.

“Oh my god,” he mumbled, glancing over at Jefferson.

“Wait,” Burr plucked out a photo. “Is… is this me? Why are there holes in my eyes, that’s creepy.”

“Yeah,” Alexander whispered, biting his lip nervously. “Do you see why I told you to go now?”

“Why are you dressed like fake royalty?” Jefferson asked. “And what’s with the- what the fuck.” His eyes narrowed when Madison got to the picture of Alexander and John kissing. “Do your job or I will? What does that mean?”

“Whoever it is is mad at me because John is on my hit list and I haven’t killed him,” Alexander blurted out. He turned his attention to Madison, because he couldn’t face the other two people in the room. “Because I’m a hitman.” There was a moment of silence as Madison and Burr exchanged anxious looks until Jefferson burst out into laughter.

“Whaaat?” he drawled.

“Be quiet,” Burr hissed with a weary glance in Alexander’s direction.

“Or what?” Jefferson raised his eyebrows. “Or Hamilton will take me out? Have you seen him? He’s literally two feet tall.” He paused and looked Burr over. “Maybe you have something to fear because he’s taller than you but normal sized people don’t have to worry.”

“How many people?” Madison asked softly. Alexander shook his head quickly and he was fixed with what was probably the sternest look that Madison was capable of. Which wasn’t much, but it still made him a little uncomfortable. “Hamilton.”

“I don’t know,” Alexander answered. “I don’t keep track. What’s important is finding out who did this. I’m pretty sure a fancy venue like this had hidden cameras, which is why I came to you in the first place. You’d know how to get the tapes. So can you help or not?”

“Hamilton,” Madison sighed, looking at the photo of Alexander and John. “This is messy.”

“Fine, then I’ll take these to the police,” Alexander snatched the photos back. “Maybe they can help me.” 

“You’ll get arrested, dumbass,” Jefferson folded his arms to his chest and Alexander froze in place. “I hate to say it, but the police are a bit useless. Turning yourself in isn’t really the best thing for your boo.”

“Did Thomas just say boo unironically?” Burr asked, his tone hushed. He still refused to look at anyone and had taken to staring down Jefferson’s empty mug. “Never mind, don’t answer that. He’s right, you know. If whoever took those photos is after you and Laurens, he definitely won’t be safe with you locked up.”

“You’re not going to go to the police with this?” Alexander looked back at Burr.

“What would be the point?” Burr shrugged, his gaze rising to meet Alexander’s. “Laurens may be annoying but he doesn’t deserve this. Besides, Alexander, rumors only grow. And we both know what we know.”

“What the hell does that mean?” Jefferson asked after a moment of stunned silence.

“I have no idea,” Alexander shrugged as he flipped through the pictures again. The photo of him kissing John had him fighting a smile once he was able to look past the ominous message.

“For God’s sake,” Burr sighed. “Literally the only other thing we’ve talked about.”

“You mean the thing at the party?” Alexander asked with a soft scoff. “That’s absolutely nothing compared to this.”

“What thing at the party?” Jefferson’s voice dipped as he turned his attention to Burr. “Wait, did you and Hamilton do dirty things at the Schuyler party? Which I’m hurt I wasn’t invited to, by the way.”

“No!” Burr exclaimed.

“The photographer would’ve caught it,” Alexander confirmed before his eyebrows furrowed together. “And what the hell? What’s up with you making all of these insinuations about me doing dirty things? It’s creeping me out.”

“You weren’t invited because Angelica thinks you’re misogynistic,” Madison spoke up. “And fine. Hamilton, I’ll see what I can do.”

“Really?” Alexander asked, smiling despite himself. “Thank you, Madison.”

“Just don’t murder him if he can’t find anything,” Jefferson reached over to rest a hand on Alexander’s shoulder. “I like him.”

“I think that’s the nicest thing I’ve ever heard you say,” Alexander breathed out a soft laugh as he stood up. “But I don’t want to be a hitman anymore. That might upset some people so I don’t know what’ll happen to me when I start turning down more stuff, but this isn’t worth it. This isn’t living.”

“What do you mean ‘what’ll happen to you’?” Burr asked quickly but Alexander shook his head in response. 

“Nothing,” he answered as he walked towards the door. “Call me if you find something?”

“Got it,” Madison nodded. “Wait, your place burned. Where are you going to stay?”

“Not here,” Jefferson stated quickly.

“I’ll go to John’s tonight,” Alexander shrugged. “And then tomorrow, I’ll rent out a motel.”

“Laurens would never let you,” Burr cut in quickly. “He likes you too much. All I heard all night was ‘Alexander this’ and ‘Alexander that’, I was relieved when Lee took over.”

“Which is why I could never stay,” Alexander fidgeted with the envelope. “John’s in danger. I can’t let anything happen to him.”

“If you don’t want to stay at a motel,” Burr seemed to be forcing himself to say this, “you can crash on my couch if you promise not to bug Theo and me after between 10pm and 8am.” 

“Theo?” Jefferson asked. “Did you get a cat, Burr?”

“Yes,” Burr answered, shooting Alexander a warning glare. Alexander mimed zipping his lips and Madison narrowed his eyes at the pair.

“Okay, thanks,” Alexander shrugged. He wasn’t going to stay with John or Burr or anyone past tonight. It would just be unnecessarily putting people in danger, since the photographer was only seeming to go after him for the time being. He pulled out his phone and dialed the number before sitting next to Burr. “I’m calling John now. Everyone shut up.” 

“Alexander?” John answered the phone after a few rings. He sounded tense and guilt twisted in Alexander’s stomach.

“I didn’t wake you up, did I?” he asked softly, and John huffed out a harsh laugh. 

“I wish,” John answered. He could hear traffic faintly in the background. “I called the cab company to come pick me up, I just got done with this fucking meeting.”

“You mean the one with Burr?” Alexander made eye contact with Burr, who looked a little puzzled.

“I thought that he would’ve been done an hour ago,” Burr whispered and Alexander shook his head with a shrug.

“Burr had to go visit some forensics guy for his case so he sent me to meet with Charles Lee,” John paused and there was some fumbling on the line. “Sorry, that was the cab. Anyways, Charles Lee is a grade-A douchebag. He yelled at me for a good forty five minutes because I got his firm’s color’s hex color code wrong by one number. He didn’t even send me the number, I had to do it by eye.”

“Wow,” Alexander breathed out.

“I swear, if you had given me a gun I would’ve shot him right in the gut,” John sighed as he told the cab driver to hold for a second. “Do you still wanna grab drinks? I could use one, or fifty.”

“Actually,” Alexander exchanged a look with Madison. “I was actually calling to ask you something? Like, a favor?”

“A favor?” John’s voice softened at that. “Of course. What’s up?” 

“There was a fire at my place while I was out with the Schuylers,” Alexander blurted and he heard John gasp lightly. “So I was wondering if I could maybe crash with you for the night? I’m not allowed back until the fire department gives it a clean bill of health. I promise, I won’t bother you. Unless you want me to, of course.”

“That was tragic,” Jefferson whispered, and he was instantly shushed by Madison.

“Alexander, oh my god,” all of the annoyance at Charles Lee in John’s tone was gone. “You can stay as long as you need to.” 

“Thank you,” Alexander whispered. “There’s still a few things I have to do with my place and I have to pick up a toothbrush and stuff because it melted but I’ll be there.”

“Yeah,” John seemed to be smiling. “I’m glad you called.” 

“Me too,” Alexander couldn’t help but smile in return and Jefferson did a very dramatic pantomime of blowing his brains out. “Bye, John. See you soon.”

“See you soon,” John echoed and Alexander hung up before exchanging a look with Burr.

“Guess I won’t be bothering you at 2am,” Alexander grinned victoriously. Burr rolled his eyes and Alexander waved goodbye before quickly leaving.

He wasn’t planning on ever going back to his apartment if he had anything to say about it. He’d pay for it to get left empty until his lease was up for all he cared. It weirded him out that the photographer, assuming that they torched his place as opposed to a partner, knew where he lived and burned it down despite the fact that he obviously wasn’t home. Clearly, he wasn’t aiming to kill him with that move. 

Alexander was used to taking people out under the radar. He didn’t do much of anything else in that same style but raising questions compromised his safety. The photographer sent threatening pictures and torched his place; you couldn’t get any more out in the open than that. He hated to admit that whoever it was had guts.

Once the photos were returned to the post box and he had picked up some essentials at the corner store, Alexander caught the cab back to John’s place. He answered the door holding Muffin with a welcoming smile.

“Hey,” John gestured for him to come inside. “Oh my god, are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Alexander shrugged as he gave Muffin a welcoming pet. “The only thing of any value that got lost in the fire was that damn suit. Should’ve gotten that insured, at least.”

“Do you want anything?” John asked gently, taking a seat on his couch and gesturing for Alexander to sit next to him.

“Yeah, to not think about the fire,” he answered bluntly as he took a breath and looked John over. He looked exhausted, with his hair was in a messy ponytail with curls framing his face, and he was wearing an old shirt and a pair of sweats but he was still stunning. It wasn’t fair.

“Okay,” John gave him a crooked smile in return as he set Muffin down on the ground and lightly pushed her away with his foot. “I could give you something else to think about.”

“Yeah?” Alexander laughed softly. “You’re as smooth as a cactus, Laurens.”

“You love it,” John teased as he pulled Alexander onto the couch and into a heated kiss. There were a lot of things that were new about John Laurens, like the way that Alexander’s heart flipped whenever he caught his eye, the chaste kisses, and how he never wanted to leave his side. But getting lost with another person’s lips against his, only breaking the kiss to get his shirt off, that was familiar. Alexander needed familiar and John seemed to recognize that, moving to lie him down on the couch and moving his mouth against Alexander’s neck without pressing him about the fire.

“Bedroom,” Alexander whispered and John quickly complied, pulling him towards his room with an arm around his waist and stopping him with quick kisses when the heat became too overwhelming.

There was a lot that was familiar about the experience. He was used to the pleasure that curled in his stomach and making another person gasp against his lips. But this was John, which added unfamiliar excitement to the whole experience. 

Alexander spent a moment after in silence, lying down and staring at the ceiling as he felt John’s hand rest on top of his. He flipped his hand to close his fingers around John’s hand, glancing sideways at him with a small smile. 

“Distracting you worked out well for me, didn’t it?” John laughed breathlessly. Alexander rolled his eyes and hit John’s arm, but it didn’t really have any bite to it.

“For the both of us,” Alexander corrected, moving closer until their sides were pressed together. “Are you doing anything tomorrow?” 

“You?” John suggested and Alexander buried his head in John’s shoulder, giggling softly.

“You’re an ass,” he mumbled, yawning gently. He was always able to sleep for a couple of hours after sex, which is why he’d let himself indulge in the middle of stressful cases. “Oh, and if you make a joke out of that, I’m breaking up with you.” As soon as he realized what he had just said, he quickly sat up and folded his arms to his chest. His fingers were pressing little white circles into his arms to hide that his hands were trembling.

“What just happened?” John asked softly, turning to face Alexander and brushing his mess of curls out of his eyes.

“Are we dating?” Alexander asked after a moment.

“That’s what I thought,” John raised an eyebrow tentatively. “Unless you don’t- do you want to be dating?” Alexander nodded quickly and John breathed out a soft laugh, visibly relaxing at his answer. “Okay. Good.”

“Good,” Alexander mumbled as he lied back down. “Night.”

“Whoa, wait a sec. What are you doing, Hamilton?” John asked with a small smile. Alexander furrowed his eyebrows and looked back at him. “Stop being cute, you’re not allowed to sleep here. The closet’s over there." 

“I fucking hate you,” Alexander rolled his eyes with a groan, giving John his most intimidating scowl even though his hair was sticking up in a hundred different directions. “You’re a shitty boyfriend. Never having sex with you again.”

“Sorry, sorry,” John laughed and wrapped a tight arm around Alexander’s waist. “Is this better, _boyfriend_?” Alexander nodded as his eyes fluttered closed, surrendering against the weight pressing down on his lids. He lazily draped an arm around John chest, which shook as he huffed out a laugh. “Great. Goodnight.” It didn’t take long for John’s steady breaths to lull Alexander into a peaceful sleep.

Alexander woke up early the next morning, images of corpses from his dreams still playing in his mind. The lights on John’s alarm said 4:23am, which really wasn’t all that bad for him. John, like most normal human beings that weren’t plagued with nightmares, was still out like a light. Alexander smiled fondly and kissed his cheek gently, for no other reason than the fact that he could, pulled on his sweatshirt, and went to go find some coffee.

Unfortunately, he had forgotten why he couldn’t have ever gotten away with killing John in his apartment. As soon as she detected movement, Muffin’s claws were tip-tapping on the hardwood floors and she started yapping, jumping up on Alexander’s leg. He tried to pick her up and shush her but it was already too late.

“Alex!” John called from his room, dragging out each sound. “What’re you doing?” 

“Coffee?” Alexander answered guiltily, trying to avoid Muffin’s tongue against his stubble.

“It’s 4:30,” John pointed out and he plodded out of the room, not bothering to get dressed. “In the morning. Why?”

“I couldn’t sleep,” he confessed as Muffin started sniffing his ear. “Stop that, that tickles! I didn’t mean to wake you up, I’m sorry.” 

“That was _her_ ,” John glared as his dog before taking her from Alexander’s arms. “It’s not your fault, she never shuts up. Sometimes she barks at the table legs. She’d be a great guard dog if she didn’t ask intruders for cuddles.”

“You know what they say, pets often take after their owners,” Alexander smiled sweetly and John threw him a dirty look. “Too early?” 

“Whatever,” John mumbled crossly. “You’re insane. I’m going back to bed.”

“Night,” Alexander stuck his hand up to wave as he turned on John’s coffeemaker. John grumbled in reply and Alexander heard the door slam behind him. So his boyfriend wasn’t a morning person. The guy couldn’t be perfect.

It turned out that being the only person awake at someone else’s place was an incredibly awkward experience. Alexander could only drag out drinking a cup of coffee for so long until it began to get cold. He read through an entire stack of old newspapers until he came across a missing person article with a familiar looking mugshot and quickly set them down. A worn out sketchbook sat on the coffee table and Alexander slowly ran his fingers over the cover of it. 

He shouldn’t look inside. It was an invasion of privacy and God knows what John would find if he thumbed through a random book at Alexander’s place. But his instincts were peaked and he flipped it open, mingled with curiosity and guilt. 

The first thing he noticed was that there were lots of drawings of turtles. On rocks, swimming in the ocean, hanging out with other turtles. Most of them were just quick sketches but others were watercolors done in beautiful detail, with greens and browns and yellows seamlessly coming together. There was a painting of John and Eliza, grinning and holding hands while Hercules and Lafayette shared a tender kiss in the background. John was holding a rainbow flag while Eliza had tattoos of rainbows on each of her cheeks, while Lafayette’s ponytail was held back with a million different colorful ribbons and Hercules’s scarf was done in beautiful tie dye. “Pride ‘16” was written in Sharpie in the bottom corner of the page, along with John’s signature, and Alexander traced a delicate finger over his handwriting. The next page had a half-finished charcoal sketch of John with the Schuylers, Hercules, and Lafayette, all sporting matching “Black Lives Matter” T-shirts. A photo of the day was paper clipped onto the corner and Alexander made sure to straighten it before turning the page and sucking in a deep breath.

His own profile was recreated in surprisingly excruciate detail. Every eyelash, misplaced hair, even the wear of the aglets on the strings on his hoodie were included. He was worrying his lower lip gently with his teeth and he was wearing the outfit from the first time John met him at the diner. It was beautiful, a word that Alexander wouldn’t have ever thought he’d use to describe himself. Hercules and Lafayette were also in this sketch but they were exchanging matching crooked smiles. It was almost as if John had pulled out his sketch book in the middle of breakfast and had posed them, having them all sit there for hours while he recorded every detail. Usually Alexander had to push and shout in order to get someone to pay half as much attention to him as John had been that day.

“The story behind that is so sappy that if I told you, you’d want to jump out my window.” Alexander jumped as he felt the couch dip next to him and he turned to face a much happier John. “Which wouldn’t work out so well, I’m on the first floor." 

“Oh, now you have to tell me,” Alexander pouted, batting his eyelashes until John put his hand in front of his face.

“Stop that,” he instructed and Alexander quickly pulled his hand away. “Fine. But you have to promise you won’t laugh at me.”

“I promise!” Alexander reached over to take John’s hand. “If you tell me, I’ll tell you something embarrassing about myself in college.”

“Oh, embarrassing college stories,” John grinned. “Deal. This isn’t really that bad, so I’ll just- I drew this after you rejected me and I was all sad.”

“I didn’t reject you,” Alexander argued. John raised an eyebrow and let go of Alexander’s hand to fold his arms to his chest.

“You totally did, shut up,” John laughed softly. “It was brutal, my heart was shattered to pieces. Beyond repair, until the Schuyler party.”

“Right, right,” Alexander nodded, waving his hand dismissively. “Tell me about the picture.”

“I didn’t want to forget you,” John confessed with a sad smile. “So I started drawing you when I got home. Took hours and I’d sometimes look at it when you stopped showing up at the diner.”

“That’s so sweet,” Alexander kissed John’s cheek and pulled him into a tight hug. “You’re such a sap.”

“Shut up or I’ll break your face,” John threatened and Alexander rolled his eyes with a huff. “Embarrassing college story, go.” He pointed at Alexander, who scrubbed his hands over his face.

“Damn it, I should’ve saved this,” Alexander mumbled into his hands and John bumped his leg harshly with his foot. “Fine. So when I was in my sophomore year of college, my study group dragged me to a bar after finals week was over. ‘Loosen up, Hamilton, you’re wound up too tight,’ they said.”

“Oh god,” John laughed and Alexander raised a finger to silence him.

“There was a girl in our group, we were beating around the bush all semester and it was reaching the pinnacle of awkward,” Alexander started. “So some other douchey looking guy asked to dance with her and I was trying to be all cool so I was like ‘yeah, go ahead’,” John laughed at Alexander’s “cool” voice, which was just his own voice but exaggeratedly deep, “and it was getting pretty heated and I was moderately drunk so I started hitting on the bartender.”

“That never goes over well,” John cringed and Alexander nodded.

“That’s an understatement,” Alexander laughed softly as he turned to crisscross his legs on the couch. “I want to remind you that I was really drunk, okay?”

“I’m sensing that,” John smiled and Alexander raised his eyebrows before continuing.

“So I decide that the best way to take home the bartender is to freestyle rap my pickup,” Alexander mumbled, taking a moment when John collapsed against his side in a fit of laughter.

“Seriously?” John asked after he managed to catch his breath. “That’s the nerdiest thing I’ve ever heard. Why did I have sex with you?”

“It actually wasn’t that bad,” Alexander quickly defended. “She just stared at me blankly and I panicked and threw in ‘you’re the strong and silent type, well I’m the Caribbean island type and I can drive you wild all night’.”

“You’re making this up,” John shook his head. “You didn’t call yourself ‘the Caribbean island type’. That’s horrible.”

“I wish I was,” Alexander sighed morosely and John tucked himself underneath his arm. “So after about ten hours of silence, give or take, she raises a sassy eyebrow, purses her lips as she looks me over pitifully, and tells me ‘no hablo inglés’. Unfortunately for her, I’m bilingual so I tell her ‘I can repeat this in Spanish if you’d like, but it probably won’t rhyme’.” 

“Did you get to freestyle in Spanish?” John asked, looking up at him with a smile.

“Sadly, I was kicked out,” Alexander ran his fingers through John’s curls gently. “She called security. They probably have my picture on their banned list.”

“Well, did you at least get to hook up with the girl?” John ran a hand down his arm gently.

“She transferred,” Alexander sighed dramatically. “Probably to get away from the drunken rapper she was crushing on, if we’re being honest here. Maybe Caribbean island wasn’t her type.”

“Shut up. What bar is this?” John asked, his face lighting up. “Herc, Laf, and I are taking you there. You can say hello to the pretty bartender.”

“I’m never telling you,” Alexander shook his head and John sighed. “I was going to wait until you woke up to tell you, but I have to go buy nice clothes for Washington’s interview tomorrow. And regular clothes, since I unfortunately can’t wear this Columbia University sweatshirt every day.”

“I cannot believe that the same guy that drunkenly freestyled to a bartender in a jealous rage has an interview with Congressman Washington,” John sat up to peck his lips and got off the couch.

“I’m very versatile, Laurens,” Alexander shot him a cheeky smile and John rolled his eyes.

“Whatever,” John leaned down to pick up Muffin, who was sitting next to his feet. “Have fun, Hamilton. We’ll be here.”

“Great,” Alexander stood up and kissed the top of Muffin’s head. “Goodbye, Muffin. I’ll miss you.”

“She misses your feet,” John laughed softly as Alexander crinkled his nose and wiped a piece of fur off of his lips. “Wow. That was sexy.”

“Everything I do is sexy,” Alexander argued as he wrapped an arm around John’s waist and pulled him into a longer kiss. John quickly reciprocated, transferring Muffin to one arm so he could wrap an arm around Alexander’s neck. This lasted for a moment, until Muffin started howling and Alexander jumped back. “Jesus. Hey, dog. Cool it.”

“She’s saying ‘ew dad, that’s gross!’,” John laughed as he set her down to give him another chaste kiss. “Now get out of here before I change my mind and make you stay.”

“Fine, okay,” Alexander made sure that his wallet hadn’t fallen out of his pocket and waved before heading out. The subway ride to the mall was fairly uneventful except for the fact that shaking thoughts of gunshots and cleaning off daggers was replaced by John’s smile and his laugh. All he wanted was for the photographer to leave him alone. It would be a nice bonus if he could give whoever sent him the first letter about Leroy a piece of his mind, but he'd settle with not being stalked anymore. Maybe finally, he could be happy.

A text from Madison lit up his phone and Alexander could feel his heart pounding in his chest. It simply read _‘Hamilton: call me, you’re going to want to hear this –JM’_ and Alexander quickly shoved his phone away. The next stop wasn’t even close to the store, but Alexander got off anyway. He couldn’t deal with the anticipation any longer and he rushed into a nearby McDonalds, locking himself in the bathroom before dialing Madison’s number.

“Hello,” he answered, his tone reflecting Alexander’s feelings perfectly. “I’m on a burner, just to be safe. I’ve never had to buy a burner before. You owe me.” 

“That’s great,” Alexander leaned against the door of the stall to keep his knees from buckling. “What is it?”

“You were right about the ballroom having hidden cameras,” his voice was hushed, as if he was afraid that someone was listening to him. “Aaron Burr and I lied and used his case to get access to them and we saw something.”

“What?” Alexander asked quickly. “Who did you see? Spit it out.”

“A guy with a camera,” Madison said slowly. “He looked pretty sketchy. Burr recognized him and said he was invited to the party; he didn’t sneak in. He also warned you to be careful, he has a record.”

“Did Burr say who it was?” Alexander’s voice had gotten higher and he was glad that Madison had decided to call instead of inviting him over. Jefferson definitely would’ve made some snide comment about that.

“Yeah,” Madison answered after a moment. “Reynolds. He said his name was James Reynolds.” Alexander sat down against the wall and took in a deep breath, fighting the urge to pass out.

“Thanks,” Alexander hung up before Madison could get in another word and rested his hands against his knees. Peggy had pointed out James Reynolds to him when Eliza had run off to talk to his wife. Who Alexander had been eating dinner with when his house was burned down. 

Had she been in on it? Was it her idea to invite him out so that James could fire his warning shot? She had been texting him the entire night, probably recording every single one of Alexander’s movements while his guard had been down, and even given him money to pay for his cab fair back to his house. She even knew who John was, which Alexander had simply chalked up to the fact that she and Eliza were so close. Alexander had been so focused on his feelings for John that he let them get in the way of his investigation of who was stalking him. 

He couldn’t visit John again until he figured out a way to take care of the Reynolds couple.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep! James Reynolds is the infamous photographer, as a lot of you guessed. The fic isn't over, however, and things are only gonna get more complicated for poor Alex. Also ICYMI Alexander's "embarrassing college story" was Usnavi's rap to Yolanda in In the Heights.  
> [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com) twitter: @linandt0nic :)


	7. Blue Check

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> DEAR MR. HAMILTON: CONSIDER THIS A WARNING. YOU QUIT WHEN I SAY SO.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a warning: There's some violence at the end of the chapter. It's about as explicit as the flashback in chapter 3 so if that was fine for you, you should be good to go.

Alexander didn’t get a lot of sleep on Sunday night due to his nerves about the interview, but he didn’t mind. It was refreshing to be preoccupied with something that didn’t involve murder.

He still spent most of the night stalking James and Maria Reynolds on Facebook, opting to stay at the cheapest hotel he could find in the city instead of going back to John’s place. He had to buy a new computer, since James had burned his old one in his twisted scheme to ruin his life. 

Maria’s profile was made up entirely of photos of her and James and excitement about her daughter. To the untrained eye it looked cute but all Alexander saw was a curtain that obscured something much darker. Eliza never made an appearance except as just another name on her friend’s list, even though he had seen for himself how close the two girls were. James was leaning on a cane in all of his photos, although Alexander didn’t remember him having one at the Schuyler party. The downside of cyberstalking was that it gave a jaded snapshot into their life, but Alexander couldn’t exactly follow them around and memorize their schedule so he’d take what he was given. His head lolled against his shoulder at around 4:30 and everything went black until his alarm went off at 10, waking him up with a start and an incredibly stiff neck.

Shit. 

It was easy to take the quickest shower known to man since there was literally no hot water and he was thankful for the fact that the hotel at least provided a blow dryer (albeit not a very good one, but what was he expecting in a place that couldn’t even get hot water?). The suit he bought the day before didn’t fit perfectly, since he didn’t have time to take it to a tailor, but he doubted that Washington would see that the sleeves concealed his hands. He was just tying his tie when his Skype ringer started to play. He sprinted over to where he had left his computer and answered on the last ring.

“Congressman Washington,” he took a deep breath to calm his nerves and gave him a polite smile. Washington was dressed in a much nicer suit and gave Alexander a curt nod. “Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me.”

“Everyone that I talked to spoke very highly of you, Mr. Hamilton, I didn’t want to miss the opportunity.” Washington was much more soft spoken than when he appeared on TV, although maybe that was just because he didn’t want to make Alexander more nervous than he already was.

“Lafayette and Angelica are good friends of mine,” Alexander answered with a smile. “I haven’t known either of them for very long, but they’ve both been incredibly kind to me.”

“Yes, they’re wonderful,” Washington answered dismissively. “Let’s get to the point, alright?” Alexander sucked in a breath at that, preparing for the worst.

 _“You seem like a smart kid, but frankly you’re a nobody,” the man on the phone hadn’t even tried to sugarcoat it when freshly barred Alexander called the mayor’s office to ask what he could do better for his next interview. “Name recognition fuels politics, I’d go in a different direction if I were you. Might I suggest being a defense attorney? People like having lawyers that they can connect with, you know?”_

“I spoke to Henry Knox,” Washington continued, smiling reassuringly when he saw the disappointment forming on Alexander’s face. “Your employment history was difficult to track down, but I managed to find out that you worked at his firm a while ago.”

“Oh,” Alexander answered, not sure how that would possibly make him feel better. “Yeah. He took me under his wing after I graduated from law school.”

“He said that I would be making a big mistake if I didn’t hire you,” Washington answered and Alexander furrowed his eyebrows. “According to him, you were a wonderful attorney with big ideas and the drive to get them done. Which leads to my next question.”

“Why am I not currently working there?” Alexander asked. “That’s a long story, actually.”

“I’ve got time,” Washington’s stiff posture relaxed slightly so that he was almost slouching. It looked awkward to see him sit like that, like seeing a dog walk on two legs. “Knox said that you left three years ago and I haven’t found anything on you since. I guess my question is why hasn’t anyone snatched you up?”

_“Alexander?” a nurse whispered once she realized that he was awake. “You have some mail. Do you want me to give it to you?"_

_“Please,” Alexander whispered, since anything louder sent unbearable burning hot pain coursing down his body. The nurse gave him a small smile and handed over the letters._

_The first one was a get well soon letter, signed by everyone at Knox’s Financial Law Firm. It was a kind gesture, but Alexander was sure that they’d all be okay if he delayed getting well for a few months if it meant a break from his worth ethic. The second envelope simply said ‘alexander hamilton’ in bright red Sharpie that sent a chill down his spine. Alexander knew what it was before he tore open the envelope, wincing as the movement prickled his stitches._

_‘DEAR MR. HAMILTON: CONSIDER THIS A WARNING. YOU QUIT WHEN I SAY SO.’ He could no longer blame a gunshot wound for being the sole cause of the pain in his chest._

_“Nurse, did you happen to see-?” he started, but she was already gone._

“Did Knox mention why I left?” Alexander asked softly.

“He did,” Washington answered. “You’re lucky to be alive, son.” Alexander felt his chest swell at the simple word and he barely managed to keep a neutral face.

“He was wonderful,” Alexander assured Washington quickly, “but what happened to me served as a wake up call. I only have one shot in this life and financial law really wasn’t for me so I left. When I’m on my death bed, I don’t want to be plagued with unfulfilled potential.”

“I understand that,” Washington nodded. “It’s admirable.” 

“Thank you, I-“ Alexander started before there was a rough knock on the door.

“Room service!” the heavily accented voice called.

 _“¡Vuelve en una hora, gracias!”_ Alexander called back, frowning at the confusion on Washington’s face. “Should’ve put up a do not disturb sign.”

“Are you at a hotel?” Washington asked.

“There was a fire at my place on Saturday,” Alexander explained. “It was awful, everything I own was destroyed. I’m staying here until further notice.”

“That’s terrible,” Washington thick-set eyebrows furrowed until they almost resembled a unibrow. “I flew out to DC this morning so my wife has no one to cook for until the weekend, so if you wanted a home cooked meal in the meantime she’s amazing. I’m biased, of course, so you can ask Lafayette if you’d like.”

“That’s very nice of you to offer, thank you,” Alexander brushed a strand of hair out of his eyes.

“Well,” Washington actually smiled at that and it made him appear much less intimidating. “Anything for my right hand man.”

“Really?” Alexander asked softly. Washington nodded, which made Alexander’s grin grow until he felt it pull at his cheeks. “Thank you so much. I cannot believe that I- thank you, Congressman Washington. Sir.”

“I should be thanking you,” Washington almost shrugged. Alexander didn’t believe that it was humanly possible to smile this hard without splitting his face into pieces. “Ms. Schuyler should as well, she’s been working way harder than necessary doing what really should be a two person job.”

“I’ll make sure to thank her then too,” Alexander forced himself to relax a little, since he was sure that Washington was a little bit terrified by the fact that he’d been grinning for so long. “When do you want me to start?”

“Definitely not until I come home for the weekend, but you can talk to Ms. Schuyler about the specifics,” Washington answered after a moment of thought. “It’s been a pleasure meeting you, Alexander. If you feel weird seeing Martha by yourself, why don’t you meet us for dinner on Saturday so I can speak to you in person? I’ll invite the Schuylers and Lafayette if you’d like. Take my suggestion as your first order from your new boss.”

“Alright,” Alexander answered with a smile. “Dinner on Saturday. That works. Thank you, again. This would be an incredible opportunity coming from any congressman, but I’ve admired you for a while.”

“That’s very kind of you to say, Alexander,” Washington smiled at that. “I have a meeting to go to, but I look forward to meeting you in person.”

“Me too,” he watched for a moment as Washington furrowed his eyebrows while his eyes darted around the screen. “Move your mouse, it’s the red button on the bottom.”

“Of course,” Washington laughed softly and Alexander returned a tiny smile. “You’re already being helpful, this is perfect. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye, Congressman Washington,” Alexander’s smile widened as Washington hung up. That went much better than he ever could’ve imagined. Not only did Alexander get the job, but Washington was just as wonderful as he had always pictured. Even though he was supposed to be avoiding John until he came up with Plan Reynolds, Alexander still didn’t think twice before typing out a text.

 **-John Laurens-**  
**Alexander Hamilton** : Washington hired me on the spot! He also called me his “right hand man”, not exactly sure what that entails but it sounds good  
**John Laurens** : no way, that’s fantastic. can I introduce you as “alexander, my hotshot boyfriend that just so happens to be washington’s right hand”?  
**Alexander Hamilton:** Yes, I’d love that

The next few days were quiet. A do not disturb sign hung on the doorknob of the hotel when he worked, except when he called to have pizza delivered. Alexander knew that sneaking up on James Reynolds was going to be harder than he expected, so he obsessed over building a plan to lure him out. Torching his place came to mind, since it would literally be fighting fire with fire. If the Reynolds couple could get away with it, he could too. He didn’t ever leave his room until Wednesday evening, when a notification caught his eye. He hadn’t noticed it before, but an unfamiliar number had called him and left a voicemail during Washington’s interview. He was sure that Reynolds couldn’t be stupid enough to call him so he didn’t think much of it when he put it on speaker while he brushed his teeth.

“Alexander, this is Aaron Burr,” the recording stated. “I’m assuming that Madison told you what we found and you’re going to do something stupid, but hear me out first. James Reynolds is not to be taken lightly. No one has been able to prove anything, since their witnesses always drop out right before trial, but he’s been tried for multiple counts of fraud.” There was a pause in the message and Alexander checked to see if Burr had hung up, but there was still time left in the recording. “His wife is trying to file for a restraining order and I’m her consultant. I can’t say anything since it would breach my confidentiality agreement with my client except please be careful. Call me back when you get this.”

If Alexander didn’t know any better, he would’ve been surprised that the girl that posted so many photos with her husband was seeking to get out of that same relationship. He had gone through that stage himself, when he immersed himself into his studies to avoid the fact that his life was in shambles. It did earn him a spot in the top 1% of his class at Columbia, but it was also exhausting. Maybe creating her own apple pie narrative and having a kid was Maria’s way of coping. He hated feeling sorry for her, since he was sure she knew much more about him and John than she was letting on, but it would be hypocritical to seek a better life for himself while thinking she didn’t deserve the same. With an annoyed huff, he called Burr back.

“Aaron Burr,” he answered the phone cordially. Alexander only allowed the eye roll because the guy couldn’t see him.

“Really?” he asked. “You can’t say ‘hello?’ like a normal person?”

“Alexander,” Burr’s voice got softer when he realized who was calling. “Thanks for calling me back. Would you mind giving me a moment?”

“Sure,” Alexander sat down on the bed. He heard some doors shut gently and background noise fade, cutting out completely when Burr shut a final door.

“Sorry, I couldn’t talk about this out there,” Burr was whispering now and Alexander turned up his phone volume to compensate.

“Listen,” Alexander started. “I know you called to try to talk me out of confronting Reynolds but I’ve dealt with dangerous people before. That’s sort of my thing, I’ll be fine.”

“Reynolds is a ghost,” Burr clicked a lock closed and Alexander barely refrained from rolling his eyes again. The guy was worse at this than Madison; Alexander should’ve picked a better group to confide in. “I know lawyers who have decided to dedicate their lives to pinning something on him and then one day they’re gone. Transferred to another state without so much as a two week’s notice.”

“I get it, he bribes and/or threatens people,” Alexander sighed. “I’m not calling about James; I’m calling about Maria.”

“Alexander, you’re a lawyer,” Burr started. “Or you went to law school anyways. You know as well as I do what could happen if I revealed anything she told me.”

“First of all, I just got a job with Congressman Washington.” Alexander couldn’t just ignore that dig into his career without responding. “I’m going into politics.”

“Oh,” Burr’s voice tensed at that. “I mean, last week he told me that- you know what? That’s great. Really. Congratulations.”

“Second of all,” Alexander continued. He didn’t really want to know what wounds he opened with his career reveal. “I’m not asking you to tell me why Maria wants the restraining order. I just want to know if you think she’s dangerous.”

“She’s a victim,” Burr’s voice dipped to the point where he actually sounded threatening. “And pregnant. Leave her alone or I’ll go to the police with everything I know about you and James Reynolds.”

“Fine,” Alexander raised an eyebrow at the intensity in Burr’s response. “But if you’re wrong about this-"

“I’m not,” Burr confirmed. “I have proof.”

“Great,” Alexander shrugged.

“But I still think that going after James Reynolds is a bad idea,” Burr started. “He’s dangerous.”

“Thanks for your input,” Alexander answered dryly. “But if I don’t do something, John and I will die. That may be karma finally calling me to collect, but he doesn’t deserve that, you said so yourself.”

“Then be careful,” Burr hissed.

“Okay, mom,” Alexander answered sarcastically as his phone beeped in his ear. He checked the caller ID and smiled. “That’s John, I should get that so he doesn’t think I’m ghosting him. I haven’t talked to him since Monday and I didn’t offer any sort of explanation.”

“Alright,” Burr sighed. “Keep in touch so I know Reynolds hasn’t killed you.”

“Relax, I’ll be fine,” Alexander forced a chuckle as he switched lines. “Hey, John.”

“Hi,” John answered. “You didn’t come back on Sunday, which I’m assuming was because you were worried about Washington’s interview, but now that that’s over and you were hired and all we could get a drink?”

“I don’t-“ Alexander started before he heard faint yapping in the background. “Is that Muffin?”

“Yeah,” John laughed softly. “She peed on the floor so I put her in her cage. For a time out.” He seemed to be talking faster than normal but perhaps Alexander was just being paranoid. “You’re not gonna turn me down, are you?”

“Maybe we should just-“ Alexander started before his computer binged, indicating that he got a new email. He didn’t pay much attention to it until he noticed that the sender was blocked.

_It’s a trap. John is bait. He only wants you dead, don’t go!!_  

“Actually, you know what?” Alexander forced his voice to stay calm. “A drink sounds really nice. You owe me a celebration, don’t you?”

“That’s right,” John answered. He sounded way too formal (the John he knew would’ve said something to the effect of “fuck yeah, let’s get drunk!”) and Alexander wondered if he was reading off of a screen. “Meet me at my place, we’ll go together.”

“Great,” Alexander smiled, even though he felt his heart pounding though his chest. _John’s bait,_ he kept repeating in his head. What was he doing to John to make him say those things? He had never met anyone that would be directly affected by him whacking people and no one had ever been as important to him as John Laurens. He had a lot riding on this; he had to keep his head. He grabbed his jacket and tucked a knife that he stole from the hotel into its pocket before sprinting to catch a cab. 

The cab ride to John’s place felt extraordinarily long and Alexander’s foot anxiously bounced the entire ride. He wordlessly handed the cab driver a handful of bills, not knowing or caring if he overpaid him or not, before leaving and staring up at the apartment complex.

He couldn’t let his emotions get in the way. He had to treat this like all of his other jobs and distance himself from them until after he was done. It would only hurt John if he freaked out about his safety and kamikazed this. He wasn’t sure if James knew that Alexander was aware of his trap, but either way staying calculated would serve to his advantage. He hadn’t exactly tried to hide the fact that he was after Alexander and it was really easy for him to figure out who it was; he wouldn’t know how to deal with a sneak attack. Luckily, Alexander excelled at those.

The chain on John’s door was snipped so, even without the email, Alexander would’ve put two and two together. Alexander tucked his hand in his pocket and wrapped his fingers around the handle of the knife before slowly pushing the door open.

“Alex?” John called from down the hall. “Come, I’m in my room!”

His hitman background really made this much easier to think through. If Alexander ever stooped so low as using a target’s boyfriend as bait, he’d want to keep said target focused on the bait while he made his attack from behind. There was only one door that offered a prime attack point for John’s bedroom, and that was his bathroom door. Alexander fixed his gaze to it as he rattled John’s doorknob, mostly to make noise. Sure enough, the door flew open and a gloved hand extended out.

A gunshot fired before Alexander even realized that James was armed. Luckily, his body worked faster than his brain and he jumped out of the way, barely avoiding being shot.

“Alex!” John yelled from his room as Alexander swung at James’s nose, knocking the gun out of his hands. Every instinct he possessed screamed at him to reassure John that he was okay but he had to stay disconnected for his sake.

“What do you want from me?” Alexander kicked the gun behind him and grabbed James’s arm to block a punch.

“Uh, your life?” James laughed softly. “So I can get my paycheck? You know my motive as well as I do, we’re not that different.” He twisted his arm until Alexander was forced to let go and punched him in the eye, causing him to stumble back against the wall. He worked his way through the stars and the pain until he saw James reaching down towards the gun.

Alexander threw his knife without thinking and watched as it sliced into James’s shoulder. James cried out in pain and Alexander seized the opportunity to wrestle the gun from him, jumping back and closing a finger around the trigger.

Two rapid shots to the heart and James crumpled, dead before he hit the ground. John calling out for him from behind the closed door drowned the rest of the world out except for a single voice screaming in his head.

_You’re screwed._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know. I'm so sorry!
> 
> I'm on [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com) and on twitter @linandt0nic :)


	8. Holy Shit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Where's Reynolds? Is he-?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! So I'm super excited about the fact that actual people are reading and (hopefully) enjoying my fic. On an unrelated note, I'm still in shock because Lin liked my tweet??? I've been blessed so I thought getting this chapter out before midnight wouldn't be the worst way to end today. 
> 
> So, uh, basically don't hate me for this chapter because the title says it all. There's hinting towards abuse but it's not really all that detailed.

“Alex?!” a thick cry from the bedroom pierced through the deafening silence. Alexander wasn’t sure how long he had been staring down at James Reynolds’s body and hoping that it would bless him with some brilliant way out of this situation. The last thing he wanted was for John to see him like this, for him to know that he even had one person’s blood on his hands. James dragged Alexander’s last chances of happiness to whatever pits of hell he was now residing in, if such a thing existed. “If you hurt Alexander, you piece of shit, I swear to  _ God  _ I’ll-!” Alexander didn’t get to hear exactly what John would do because he pushed the bedroom door open to put him out of his misery. “Oh my god.”

“John,” he whispered, setting the gun on John’s dresser and moving to untie his hands. John stood up to pull him into a very rough kiss as soon as he was free, wrapping his arms around him tightly until Alexander was having trouble breathing. It hurt like hell from where he had been slammed into the wall but he didn’t mind, resting a tender hand on John’s cheek and gently wiping away fresh tears that were beginning to form. John started to hesitate after a moment and broke the kiss, leaning his forehead against Alexander’s for a moment.

“Where’s Reynolds?” he asked softly. Alexander raised his gaze for a moment in question, but John was more focused on the gun than him. Bruises were beginning to form on John’s neck and his eyes were rimmed red from crying. “Is he-?”

“You should stay in here,” Alexander’s voice was hollow and John shook his head quickly.

“He is,” John’s voice softened in realization. “Because you-“

“I’m sorry,” Alexander’s words burned in his throat and he heard John choke back a sob.

“Holy shit, Alex,” John took a step back from him and Alexander felt a sharp crack in his heart. “Holy shit. You killed him?” Alexander turned towards the gun and nodded his head slowly. “Holy-“

“Shit,” Alexander finished. “Yeah, I know.”

“Why aren’t you freaking out about this?” John’s voice got higher. “You shot a guy and all you have to say for yourself is ‘I’m sorry’? What the fuck?”

“He was going to shoot me,” Alexander defended himself. “That was his plan. He was stalking me, he wanted to kill me.”

“I know that,” John ran a frantic hand through his hair and shook his head, pacing in a small circle around the corner of his room. “He put that gun to my head and made me call you. He told me what to say, he said he wanted your money. I tried to explain that you had literally nothing to give him but he wouldn’t listen. I should’ve known something was off ‘cause it didn’t make any sense, but I promise I had no idea that he was going to shoot at you until I heard the gunshot. And you did what you had to do to survive, I get that. I was so scared that he hurt you, or worse, and you’re really fucking calm about this. He’s still a human being that you shot to death, how are you not freaking out?”

“So he didn’t tell you why he wanted me dead?” Alexander asked softly. John furrowed his eyebrows together and shook his head.

“Really?” John snapped, his pacing circle gradually decreasing in diameter. “That’s what you have to say to all of this? Holy shit. Alex, what did you do?”

“Nothing,” Alexander answered quickly.

“I don’t believe it,” John crossed his arms to his chest and turned towards him. “Tell me.”

“I really did nothing,” Alexander insisted. “That was why I got a target put on my back. I disobeyed. This isn’t the first time this happened and it won’t be the last, unless I do something about it.”

“What does that mean?” John asked slowly after taking a few shaky breaths. “You disobeyed? Who?”

“I don’t know,” Alexander closed his eyes gently, a single tear slipping past his eyelashes. “Someone who wants you dead. I chose to protect you instead of following their orders.”

“What the fuck?” John asked, breathing out a hysterical laugh. “That is- that’s crazy. I’m assuming ‘following their orders’ meant that I had the same fate as James Reynolds. Are you going to shoot me, Hamilton?”

“No,” Alexander felt a lump form in his throat. “I was never going to.”

“But you were told to,” John finished tentatively. When Alexander didn’t answer, John raised his hands to his forehead, pushing his curls back. “Jesus Christ.”

“John,” Alexander tried to step closer but John backed up until his back was pressed against the wall. “You have to listen to me.”

“No,” John glared at him and Alexander froze in his tracks. “You lied to me. Oh my god. All of this was fake, wasn’t it? So you could learn more about me to make your job easier.”

“Of course not,” Alexander felt like someone had just punched him in the gut. “Our relationship is real. I really like you.”

“Bullshit.” John’s gaze turned cold. Alexander inhaled sharply as more tears fell down his cheeks. “You’re more upset about me being mad at you than Reynolds’s death. I can’t- I can’t be around you right now.”

“I get that,” Alexander stared at the floor in dejection. “But there’s a dead body in your apartment.” John groaned and pushed past Alexander, bumping his shoulder roughly before taking a seat on his bed.

“Fuck you, Alexander,” he buried his face in his hands and rubbed at his temples for a moment. “Get me my phone, Reynolds took it. I’m calling the police.”

“If you turn me in, I’ll go to jail,” Alexander thought he saw a questionable flicker in John’s eyes and sighed softly. “I understand if you hate me but when word gets out about James you’ll be in danger again.”

“You’re not going to go to jail,” John mumbled, “it was self defense.”

“No one would buy it,” Alexander shook his head quickly. “And, even if I got off by some miracle, my life would be ruined. Washington’s reputation would be destroyed.”

“I DON’T CARE!” John’s voice was rough enough to make Alexander flinch. “James Reynolds is dead in my apartment, there are more important things for you to worry about than my feelings or Washington. God damn it, can’t you see how fucked up that is?” Alexander stared down at the ground and bit his lip to keep it from trembling as John’s words slashed at his chest.

“Okay, I’ll call the police,” Alexander’s voice felt hollow as he picked up his phone and dialed 911, sniffling softly as he held his phone to his ear.

“Wait,” John whispered at the first ring. Alexander furrowed his eyebrows and looked up at John, who was fidgeting with the rope that James had used to tie him up.

“Wait, what?” Alexander whispered hoarsely.

“911, what’s your emergency?” the voice on the other line asked calmly, which only made Alexander’s heart rate quicken.

“I don’t want you to go to jail,” John whispered back. It wasn’t much of anything at all, but Alexander still felt his heart swell at those words.

“I’d like to report a robbery,” Alexander answered quickly, forcing his voice to stay calm. “I believe you stole my heart.”

“I-“ the dispatcher answered slowly. “Sir, that’s inappropriate.”

“Sorry,” Alexander smiled sheepishly. “Have a nice day. Bye.” He hung up and looked back at John. “So.”

“So nothing,” John said quickly. “You’re still a hitman. Maybe you deserve to rot in jail but someone else needs to be responsible for that.”

“Right,” Alexander set his phone down on the counter, trying not to show how John’s words shattered him. “I’m going to, uh, figure out how to get rid of the body. And clean up the place, while I’m at it. You should stay in here.”

“Let me help you,” John looked up at him.

“John…”

“No,” John answered quickly. “In a way, I got you into this mess.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Alexander shook his head. “I got myself into this mess years ago. It’s just coming back to bite me in the ass. Hard, right when things were starting to be good for once and I could see a light at the end of the tunnel.”

“Stop,” John looked down at the ground. “I’m not even sure if I like you right now so don’t say that.” He paused and looked towards the door, taking a steadying breath. “Right. So what do we do?”

“You really don’t have to do anything,” Alexander took a step closer to the door. “I can take care of it, you can-“

“What do we do?” John repeated, folding his arms to his chest. “I’m assuming you’ve done this before.”

“John, really,” Alexander looked down to avoid the look in his eye. “You don’t want to get involved in this. Trust me on that.”

“It’s a little late for that,” John scoffed softly, staring down the door. Alexander wasn’t sure if he was preparing himself to leave or avoiding looking at Alexander. “ _ I _ lured you here and then you killed him in  _ my _ apartment, I’m already involved.”

“Fine,” Alexander stepped past John and pushed the door open. “Don’t step in anything.”

John didn’t handle seeing his first dead body much better than Alexander had back when he was nineteen. He completely ignored Alexander’s warnings not to step in anything and rushed off, slamming the bathroom door behind him. Alexander didn’t mind; he didn’t want John to see how easily getting rid of a crime scene came to him.

John refused to look at Alexander any more than necessary throughout the process, let alone speak to him. He’d stare at his hands in silenced horror instead, as if they were permanently covered in blood. It was very Macbeth-esque ( _ even though John didn’t kill Reynolds and did that make Alexander Lady Macbeth? The metaphor was messy at best _ ) and incredibly depressing. The process had taken all night so neither of them had gotten a wink of sleep. Alexander wasn’t sure he would have been able to even if it was an option and he was sure John felt the same. At around 10 the next morning, after grabbing Starbucks to avoid turning into zombies, Alexander had suggested that they sit at the park across from John’s apartment for some peace and quiet. John had simply shrugged, which he decided he’d take as a yes. He tried to respect John’s wishes for silence but he could hardly sit still while all these questions danced in his head. He lasted about twenty seconds before he stood up to go back to his hotel, freezing when he felt fingers close around his wrist.

“I don’t want to be alone,” John’s voice sounded shot, like he had screaming at the top of his lungs for the past few hours instead of stubbornly remaining silent, and Alexander turned back towards him. His attention was fixed on his apartment window. “I can’t go back there.”

“Okay,” Alexander answered softly. “You don’t have to go back if you don’t want to.”

“Oh my god,” John’s eyes widened in realization and Alexander took a short breath. “Muffin is still there.”

“I can bring her to you,” Alexander tried to keep his voice as calm as possible, even though his heart had been pounding through his chest since John called and his surroundings were starting to spin.

“Don’t go,” John answered quickly, sighing when he realized the position he was currently in. “I- I guess I’ll come with you.”

“Okay,” Alexander nodded towards the apartment and John stood up, following him wordlessly to their door. He noticed John’s face pale as they got closer to his door and looked back, starting to reach to squeeze his hand before swinging his arm awkwardly at his side. “Stay out here.”

“Okay,” John looked relieved and he fixed his gaze to the floor as Alexander stepped inside. As soon as the door closed behind him, the room was filled with nonstop yapping. Alexander reached down to open the cage door and Muffin curled back into the corner, still barking.

“What?” Alexander asked as he crouched in front of the cage. “You don’t trust me either?” Muffin answered with a sharp whine and Alexander sighed. “Come on, Muffin. It’s me, Alex.” She poked her head around the corner closest to the bathroom, whimpering harshly as her tail sunk between her hind legs. “Oh. I know what’ll make you feel better. John!”

“What?” John burst into the apartment, relaxing when he saw Alexander sitting in front of Muffin unharmed. “Oh. Sorry, I thought-“

“It’s okay,” Alexander reassured him quickly. “I think Muffin’s worried about you. C’mere.” John watched Alexander wearily as he stepped closer and sat down next to him.

“Can you get treats?” he asked as he gave Muffin a half smile. “They’re in the drawer closest to the door. She gets like this at the vet’s office too.”

“Yeah,” Alexander gave him a small smile and tossed the treats over. “Do you want me to grab anything else? Clothes, shampoo, anything?”

“Actually, that might be nice,” John poured some treats into his hand and tuned out Alexander. “You didn’t eat dinner, remember? This must smell delicious.” Muffin’s willpower lasted a grand total of fifteen seconds before she left the cage and John scooped her up. Alexander turned away so that John wouldn’t see the ridiculous smile spreading across his face. He really needed a good night’s sleep. “Her leash is in the same drawer as the treats, we should grab that.” Alexander nodded and pulled it out, looking it over with an arched eyebrow.

“It’s rainbow,” Alexander pointed out as he stepped closer and hooked the leash to Muffin’s collar. He didn’t miss John’s shoulders tense up when their arms accidentally brushed.

“It serves as a big fuck you to my Catholic school,” John answered simply, almost smiling at that. Alexander nodded as he went off to gather some of John’s things from the bathroom, since John refused to step anywhere near it, and met him by the door.

“There’s a stop that I have to make,” Alexander stated after a moment. “Which I’m not looking forward to, you can hang out at my hotel room while I go.”

“I don’t want to be alone,” John shook his head decisively. “Where are we going?”

“I have to find Maria Reynolds,” Alexander answered, fidgeting with the sleeve of his coat. “She’s probably in danger.”

“Maria Reynolds as in James Reynolds’ wife?” John’s eyebrows shot up.

“She deserves to know,” Alexander folded his arms in front of him. “That’s he’s gone. For her own safety.”

“Or so that she could turn us in to the police,” John corrected, taking in a shaky breath. “Alex, this is crazy.”

“Burr said she was looking to get a divorce,” Alexander explained as he stepped outside of the apartment. “Trust me, if someone told me that they killed whoever led me into this mess I’d be forever in their debt.”

“You’re not married to them,” John argued before his eyes narrowed. “Wait. Did you say  _ Burr _ ? Is he involved in this?”

“He may have been in the room when I was seeking advice from old acquaintances,” Alexander mumbled after a moment, earning an irritated scoff from John.

“Of course he was!” John’s voice rose an octave, earning a loud howl from Muffin. “He’s the biggest stickler for rules on the entire planet. What’s stopping him from going to the police?”

“Reynolds was stalking me at the Schuyler party,” Alexander gestured John to follow him outside. “He sent me photos of everyone that I talked to. The Schuylers, Burr, Lafayette, Herc, and you. They were a threat, that’s why I looked so horrible the day after.”

“Isn’t that delightful?” John mumbled under his breath. “Do I even want to know what Reynolds was threatening?”

“I think he was basically saying that if I didn’t kill you, he’d kill all of my friends,” Alexander found Maria’s address on his phone and gestured for John to follow. She lived close enough to walk, which was a relief since he was sure John would probably go crazy if he had to sit in a cab.

“Yeah, I definitely didn’t want to know that,” John set a struggling Muffin down, still holding her leash. “Can I ask you something?”

“Go ahead,” Alexander shrugged.

“Why didn’t you kill me?” John asked, catching up to walk next to him.

“You’re a better man than me, Laurens,” Alexander gave him a tiny smile, earning an eye roll in response. “I knew even before I met you that I wouldn’t be able to go through with it. I couldn’t figure it out but something about you seemed special. And then you had to go and be all gorgeous and fucking likeable. Add your dumb crush on top of that, which just made it impossible since no one likes me.”

“But you killed people before, right?” John pointed out. “Before Reynolds. What made me different?”

“I could come up with a reason that justified ending their lives,” Alexander kicked at a pebble on the sidewalk. “They did awful things and I told myself that the world would be better off without them so that I could sleep at night. Which doesn’t exactly work since, if you couldn’t tell by looking at me, I rarely sleep. I tried to come up with something for you but you’re all sweet with your stupid freckles and stuff.” John was quiet for a moment and handed the leash to Alexander so that he could cross his arms in thought. He glanced over at Alexander pensively before looking back at the sky, sighing gently. “What’s on your mind?”

“So it was real then?” he asked gently. Alexander could see the vulnerability in his eyes even though they were still directed at the sky.

“Yes, of course,” Alexander reassured him quickly. “I like you, if that’s what you’re asking. A lot. It scared the hell out of me so I tried to pretend that I didn’t but that really didn’t work out.”

“Okay,” John fixed his ponytail and turned back to Alexander. He took a deep breath before grabbing his wrist tentatively. Alexander felt the world stop as he widened his eyes, warmth spreading from everywhere that John’s hand touched his arm.

“What are you-?”

“Let me say this,” John whispered and Alexander quickly bit his tongue, recognizing the urgency in John’s tone. “I like you a lot as well. But I’m scared. I don’t know if you’re hiding anything else from me and-“

“I’m not,” Alexander cut in quickly and John looked down at his hand, as if he was wondering how it got there. “I’m an open book now, John, and-“

“Oh my god,” John actually smiled and Alexander felt hope flicker in his chest for the first time since he shot Reynolds. “Shut up, Hamilton.”

“I’ll try, but-“ John fixed him with a glare and Alexander awkwardly trailed off, smacking his lips together and quirking an eyebrow in return. “Fine. Continue.”

“I have a soft spot for you,” John obliged after a moment of silence, presumably spent picking the right words to describe what was going through his head. “Maybe that’s what’s stopping me from leaving you, I don’t know. Or maybe it’s the fact that I don’t think I’ve ever clicked with someone else this fast. But we need to slow down a bit, otherwise I’m sure that I’ll- well.”

“Fall?” Alexander whispered, taking a deep breath at the word. John nodded as his eyes fluttered closed and Alexander felt his heart pounding through his chest. He’d decided long ago that no one deserved to fall for him, certainly no one as amazing as John Laurens. Love and happiness were simply concepts that he’d read about, like string theory or aliens. He didn’t think he’d ever truly experience either until he met John.

“We’ve been together for what?” John huffed out a soft laugh. “Four days? We’d need to slow it down anyways or we’ll turn into a gay Romeo and Juliet. I hate Romeo and Juliet.”

“Yeah,” Alexander nodded, smiling back. “Okay. You’re right. Sorry for sweeping you up in my impulsivity.”

“I’ve got enough of my own without adding you to the picture,” John shrugged and they continued the rest of their walk in silence. Alexander jumped when John continued his thought once they arrived at Maria’s doorstep. “I’m going to stay with Herc and Laf for a while.” It was dropped in the middle of the city and Alexander wondered if they sold their kidneys on the black market to afford it. “Laf is loaded so they basically have a mansion out in the suburbs. You should find someplace to go as well. Hotel rooms are expensive.”

“Burr actually offered to let me crash at his place, maybe I’ll take him up on that offer,” Alexander shrugged as he hit the doorbell, pulling a gentle laugh from John. He was a little hurt that John didn’t invite him to his slumber party with Hercules and Lafayette but he supposed that this is what he meant by ‘taking it slow’.

“Stop making me feel sorry for you, I made up my mind,” John’s arm pressed against his for a nanosecond before multiple locks were undone and the door swung open.

Maria displayed none of her perfection that she usually presented to the world. Eyeliner smeared down her cheeks and yellowing bruises were scattered across her face and neck. She only wore a flimsy white robe and her arms were wrapped tightly across her stomach. She wearily took in both Alexander and John’s appearances before taking in a sharp breath.

“Oh, fuck,” she cursed, new tears trailing down her cheeks. Alexander missed her perfect make up and the shy smiles she had exchanged with Eliza over Subway sandwiches. “You can’t be here, Hamilton.”

“Maria,” John’s voice was hushed. “Are you okay?”

“Just come in before anyone sees us together,” she hissed, stepping aside. Alexander took John’s hand in a bold move to lead him inside. “James. Is he-?” she tried to keep her voice strong, but her trembling, swollen lip gave her fear away.

“I’m so sorry,” Alexander whispered and Maria sunk down to the couch, tucking her knees into her chest as best as she could. All Alexander could see was a mess of curls as her chest heaved in sobs. “Who did this to you?”

“I think it was James,” John whispered when Maria didn’t answer. She lifted her head at that and wiped under her eyes tenderly.

“After I tried to help you,” she sniffled bitterly and Alexander bit his lip guiltily. “I chose a stranger over my husband and now he’s gone.”

“When you sent me the email?” Alexander asked carefully, although the bruises looked a bit older than his and John’s.

“No, when I asked Eliza if you could come to dinner with us,” she corrected and Alexander narrowed his eyes in confusion. He had assumed that inviting him had been her idea, but he thought that it was working with James instead of against him. John started to open his mouth to say something, but Maria continued. “I ruined his plan, he was just disappointed in me. It’s okay, I expected worse.”

“You wanted to leave him,” Alexander stated and Maria looked back at him, fire in her gaze.

“How did you-?”

“Burr,” he explained simply.

“He wasn’t supposed to tell anyone,” Maria whispered to her hands.

“He only told me,” Alexander stepped towards the couch, looking at the spot next to her in question. “When I asked if you wanted to kill me too.” Maria nodded wordlessly and he took the seat next to her, looking back at John.

“He doesn’t normally kill people,” Maria explained quickly. “Normally, he had me seduce rich married men and then forced them to pay out in exchange for his silence. But something wasn’t right; he usually wasn’t secretive about the things that he did to me. So I... went behind his back and looked you up. You aren't married, your place is a dump, and you don’t have a job. You’re not his typical victim.”

“I have a job now,” Alexander argued and John gave him an annoyed look. “Sorry. Not the point.”

“What did you mean when you told Alex that he can’t be here?” John asked, looking back at Maria. Alexander furrowed his eyebrows; he had been more focused on Maria’s bruises and tears than her words at that moment. “And to ‘come in before anyone sees us’?”

“We’re being watched, don’t you get it?” Maria looked down at her hands. “All of us. Everyone you talk to. We have to be careful.”

“By who?” John asked, but Alexander already knew the answer.

“The person that hired me,” Alexander answered for her. “And then hired James.”

“Sorry,” John raised his hands in mock defense at the briskness in his tone. “I’m new to this whole hitman universe.”

“Maria,” Alexander cut in in lieu of a response, “do you know anything?”

“Not exactly, but you might want to see this,” Maria got up quickly and stepped out of the room.

“She’s not safe here,” John took the seat on the other side of the couch when he was sure that she was gone. “We have to get her out of here.”

“I know,” Alexander whispered back. “Maybe I could bring her with me to Burr’s.”

“He’ll love that,” John scoffed, glancing around the room. Maria returned with an envelope and handed it to Alexander, her red acrylics forming dents in the paper from gripping it too hard.

“I found this in James’s sock drawer a few days ago when I was putting away laundry,” Maria explained. Alexander knew what was inside before he pulled it out of the already opened envelope, but John gasped and snatched the picture from him.

“That’s us,” he whispered in horror. Sure enough, a blurry photo showed Alexander and John talking outside the diner with red X’s crossing out both of their faces. “When we first met. What do the X’s mean?”

“A red X marks a hit,” Alexander explained softly. John groaned and scrubbed his hand over his face. “They’ve been watching us this entire time. Maria, you have to come with me.”

“Why should I trust you?” her hand rested over her stomach. “You're worse than James is. You do this all the time.”

“That's true,” Alexander sighed and met her gaze. “But I'm trying to do better. You don't deserve to be a part of this any more than John does. I want to help you like you helped me.”

“That didn’t exactly go that well for me, did it?” Maria shot back, scoffing at Alexander’s statement. “I helped you and you murdered my husband. I can’t imagine what you returning the favor will cost me.”

“Burr told me he was dangerous when we found out he was coming after me,” Alexander brushed a hand through his hair. “Look at you. He did this to you, he wasn’t a good man.”

“Don’t you dare tell me who my husband was,” Maria’s voice rose as she got to her feet. “You took him away from me.”

“We all know that Alex has fucked up,” John started, resting a gentle hand on Alexander’s shoulder. “But James tied me to a chair and tried to shoot him.”

“He burned my house down too,” Alexander added, squeezing John’s hand gently. Maria sat back down and shook her head, pressing her fingers against her temples.

“He was planning on killing you that night in the fire,” Maria blurted after a moment of silence. “He wanted you to burn in an agonizing death or something, I don’t know.” Alexander and John exchanged quick looks before John hopped to his feet.

“And with that, I need to get out of here,” he explained. “Maria, I wish we could’ve formerly met under different circumstances.” He quickly rushed out with Muffin on his heel and Alexander sighed as the door slammed shut behind him.

“Are you going to go after him?” Maria jumped at the noise, her hands moving to guard her face instinctively. Alexander shrugged a shoulder with a soft sigh.

“He specifically told me that I wasn’t invited to go with him,” Alexander explained before his face lit up with an idea. “Why don’t you stay with Eliza?”

“Actually, I may just take you up on your offer to go with you to Burr’s place,” Maria stated after a moment of consideration. “She would just freak out if she saw me like this and then I’d break down and tell her everything.” She paused for a moment before pursing her lips and looking back at Alexander. “You don’t think Burr’s gonna be upset about me asking to crash at his place? I’m just his client, we’re not friends or anything.”

“Just explain the situation to him, he actually does care about you,” Alexander waved a hand dismissively. “He told me that he’d tell the police everything he knew if I did anything to you.”

“Okay,” Maria stood up again. “Let me get my things and then I’ll go with you.” Alexander shot her a small and unreturned smile as she left, sighing as he scrolled through his phone and opened his messages. His brief conversations with John had once made him smile, but now they left him feeling empty. In a perfect world, he would have been able to protect John from harm without having to figure out how to deal all of the drama revolving around him knowing about it.

Actually, in a perfect world he would have been at the diner that morning due to pure coincidence. Hercules and Lafayette would have still schemed to get them together and offered John $20 to invite Alexander to hang out with them, but the dark circles under Alexander’s eyes would’ve been replaced with laugh lines as they exchanged witty banter and bright smiles. John still would’ve lied about going to work when Alexander started to leave. Alexander would’ve happily accepted John’s dinner request with a peck on the cheek, but not before teasing him about how sappy his ridiculous crush was. He would have taken a cab to work (still with Washington of course) instead of sulking at his wreck of an apartment. Alexander and John would’ve kissed for the first time under the bright city lights instead of a camera flash. Alexander wouldn’t have smelled like soot the first time they had sex and he wouldn’t have used it as a distraction tactic. They’d currently be cuddling on John’s couch while watching reruns of Friends with Muffin nestled in between them, lazily making out during commercial breaks. John would argue that Alexander was the living embodiment of Ross Geller and Alexander would giggle and ask why John hated him enough to compare him to that weirdo. They wouldn’t have a care in the world except for the success of Lee’s website and whatever project Washington had trusted Alexander with.

“Alexander,” Maria rested a gentle hand on Alexander’s shoulder, effectively ripping his perfect fantasy world just out of reach. “Do you think it’s unsafe to go together?” Alexander nodded wordlessly.

“Maybe,” he answered softly, glancing back and frowning at the fear in Maria’s eyes as he stood. “But we should stick together. Power in numbers and shit.” Maria nodded and opened the door for him and nodded for Alexander to follow, locking up and taking a moment to give the Reynolds’ residence a proper goodbye.

He had hoped that killing James Reynold could get the target off of his and John’s backs and lead to some semblance of a happy life. Instead, he had upset John and, in the grand scheme of things, solved absolutely nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To celebrate the fact that I was noticed by Lin (which is iterally all I've been talking about all day??), my twitter is @linandt0nic and you can also find me on [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com)!


	9. Slum-Burr Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “What did you do, Alexander?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to get this chapter published by John Laurens's birthday (or Anthony's, which was 11/1) but obviously that didn't happen haha

Aaron Burr answered the door after the fifth knock in nothing but a black robe and matching Memory Foam slippers. It was a bit jarring to see him without his signature pressed suit, almost like watching a dog walk on two legs. He looked between Alexander and Maria before groaning in irritation and stepping outside, gently pulling the door shut.

“What did you do, Alexander?” he hissed.

“Uh…” Alexander smiled sheepishly and ran a hand over the back of his neck. “You were right about James Reynolds being dangerous.”

“Oh my god!” Burr exclaimed before looking back at the door wearily. “Is he dead?” Maria folded her arms to her chest and looked down, her lip trembling. “Oh. Maria, I’m so-“

“He is,” Maria whispered and the last word of Burr’s question remained unspoken. She looked back up at Alexander and gave him an affirmative nod. Alexander didn’t miss the tear slipping down her cheek, pulling a smudge of mascara along with it. “He did this to himself.”

“We need somewhere to stay,” Alexander continued tentatively. “And you told me that I could stay with you if I needed to.”

“Yes, I guess I did,” Burr ran a hand over his head, looking like he really regretted opening his mouth in the first place. He pulled the door open and stepped inside, gesturing for them to follow. His place was small but chique, much like the man himself, with black furniture and a flatscreen TV. “Theodosia’s asleep in the next room, you’re going to have to be quiet.”

“No,” a new presence answered and gave a friendly smile to the three of them. She was really quite pretty, donning matching pajamas and her braids tied into a high bun. “She’s awake. Are these friends of yours?”

“I suppose you could say that,” Burr answered with a shrug. “This is Alexander Hamilton. You know Maria. They need somewhere to stay for... they didn’t exactly say how long.”

“Theodosia Prevost,” she extended her hand towards Alexander, who shook it with a polite smile. “I’d say that our doors are always open, but Aaron might kick me out for that and his sheets are much nicer than mine.”

“You’re much cooler than I was expecting,” Alexander laughed softly. “No offense. I was picturing Burr’s female counterpart when he mentioned a girlfriend.”

“Aaron could never deal with dating himself,” Theodosia wrapped an arm around Burr’s waist with a smile. “He’s awful at making decisions. He and his hypothetical double would just starve to death while he’s trying to decide between getting spaghetti and ravioli. He needs someone to tell him that it’s okay to go for it and order both.”

“Not exactly something you want to hear about your lawyer,” Maria mumbled under her breath and Burr cracked a smile.

“My indecisiveness only affects my personal life,” he defended himself before pecking Theodosia’s cheek quickly.

“He’s an amazing lawyer,” Theodosia confirmed with a smile. “Best in the business.”

“Maybe not for long,” Alexander shot a smirk in Burr’s direction. “I’m totally taking you down once I get started with Washington.” Theodosia breathed out a soft laugh, which quickly turned into a yawn.

“Well,” she started, looking back at Burr fondly. “I’m going to turn in. Aaron, you’ll show them where they can sleep?”

“Of course, darling,” he kissed her softly, running a hand over the small of her back. “Goodnight.”

“You’re joining me in, like, two minutes right?” Theodosia popped an eyebrow, giving him another gentle kiss.

“Yes, I just wanted to say goodnight now in case you were already passed out when I came in,” Burr smiled back. Alexander didn’t think he ever saw a genuine smile on that guy’s face. It suited him. Theodosia rolled her eyes fondly before heading back into Burr’s room.

“So she’s great,” Alexander laughed softly and Maria nodded swiftly.

“Yeah,” Burr looked towards the door with a wistful smile. “So Maria. You should take the couch, it’ll be better for your back. Alexander, you’ll have to sleep on the floor. I don’t have another bed.”

“That’s fine, I’ve slept on worse,” Alexander shrugged as Burr gave them both blankets. He didn’t want to mention that he probably wasn’t going to get a ton of sleep, since he wasn’t quite sure if Burr would force feed him cough syrup to ensure that he didn’t keep anyone else up. “Have a nice slumber, Mr. Burr. Sir.”

“Please stop doing that,” Burr sighed as he returned to his bedroom. Alexander bit back a laugh as he turned back to Maria, who was currently staring up at the ceiling.

“Let me know if you need anything, okay?” Alexander whispered after a moment. Maria nodded mutely and Alexander twiddled with his thumbs. It was a rare moment when he didn’t know what to say to someone, but what does one say after shooting a pregnant girl’s husband dead? “Listen. I’m really sorry about everything that happened. I didn’t want to-“

“It happened,” Maria breathed out a soft sigh. “I don’t blame you, he was going to kill you and John if you didn’t. I would have done the same to you if it meant protecting James.”

“Oh,” Alexander turned back to face her. “Still. Your daughter is going to grow up without a father now. My father left when I was kid so I know that’s not always easy.”

“I was only going to leave him because of her,” Maria wiped a tear away and looked down at her stomach. “I love him but I have to protect her. I want her to have a good life.”

“She’s going to have an amazing life,” Alexander gave her a tiny smile.

“Yeah,” Maria sighed softly and spun a curl around her finger. “James and I met when I was fifteen. I had dropped out of school to help my parents with bills. He had money and took a liking to me. We got married within a week.”

“Wow, I thought John and I were moving fast,” Alexander breathed out a soft laugh, getting a tentative smile in return.

“Sit up here with me,” Maria whispered after a moment. Alexander raised an eyebrow, remembering what she said she did for James in the first place.

“Maria, I don’t know if-“ Alexander paused and Maria rolled her eyes in response.

“Jesus, Angelica was right about you,” she laughed weakly at that. “One track mind. I’m not going to trick you into anything, I don’t need to do that for him anymore.”

“In that case,” Alexander grabbed his blanket and brought it up to the couch with her, “It’s weird how uncomplicated this is. Just sitting on Burr’s couch with the girl that I made into a widow.”

“You saved me,” Maria reassured him quickly. “There were times where I wanted to shoot the guy, it’s-“ she paused and sniffled, fresh tears trailing down her cheeks. “It’s o-okay.”

“Talk to me,” Alexander whispered, wrapping a tentative arm around her.

“He was horrible, but not all the time,” Maria leaned against him. Alexander ran his hand over her arm gingerly. “Like, okay. After we got a big pay out, he’d take me out. We’d dance, kiss, laugh together, all those things that normal couples do. And he’d look at me and brush my hair out of my face and say ‘Baby, I could never do this without you’. And in those moments, I’d tell myself that him needing me made all of it okay. All of these…  _ things _ that I was doing.” She laughed weakly and looked back up at Alexander. “I must sound like a horrible person.”

“No, we have more in common than you think,” Alexander shook his head. “It took meeting John for me to realize how messed up my life was. Don’t get me wrong, I knew how terrible this all was. But I didn’t think anything better was possible. It’s going to get better for the both of us, I’m going to make sure of it. I don’t ever give up, so that’s a guarantee.” He paused for a moment before giving Maria a tiny smile. “What now?”

“I don’t know,” Maria sighed gently. “Pretend to look for James. Get a job at McDonalds and get my GED so I can do something better in the future. I don’t want my daughter to grow up like I did.”

“Maybe spend more time with Eliza?” Alexander suggested softly. Maria shrugged and curled closer to him.

“James would’ve been pissed if he knew my best friend was loaded and seducible,” Maria looked down at the leather on the couch.

“And already into you,” Alexander added. Maria rolled her eyes and folded her arms tightly to her chest.

“She’s far too good for me,” Maria said after a minute, looking back at Alexander as if daring him to argue. He never responded well to those looks; Jefferson could definitely attest.

“That doesn’t matter, she likes you,” Alexander responded quickly. “At the party, she practically lit up when she saw you.”

“Which is why I can’t do this to her,” Maria snapped and Alexander bit his lip gently. “She doesn’t deserve this.”

“By ‘this’, do you mean you?” Alexander asked. He didn’t care if he was overstepping his boundaries. He had to make it so that Maria and Eliza were okay. If they didn’t end up together because of Maria’s past, what forces make it okay for him and John to be together? Alexander had done much worse things than sleep with married men for blackmail opportunities. He could corrupt John much more than Maria could ever corrupt Eliza. Hell, he already had gotten him involved in his twisted life. Eliza didn’t deserve this any less than John.

“I have to pretend to look for James,” Maria whispered. “Get on my feet. I have a daughter to think about now. If James was still alive, I could’ve gotten child support from him.”

“I have John’s hit money,” Alexander’s face lit up in realization. “Most of it, anyway. About 9 grand left. I have a job now; I can give it to you.”

“It’s okay, you don’t have to-“

“No,” Alexander cut her off. “When James burned my place down, you paid for my taxi because you felt like you bared partial responsibility. I’m taking full responsibility, which rounds out at around 9 grand. Which I’m giving to you in its entirety as soon as I get my first pay check. Because I need to eat and that’s all I have at the moment. But I can give you half tomorrow, it’s locked away.” Maria paused for a moment in consideration. “Or I’ll call in an anonymous tip and lead the police to James and you’ll get everything.”

“You’d be putting yourself and John in danger if you did that,” Maria shook her head quickly. “That would be incredibly stupid.”

“Then take the hit money,” Alexander insisted. Maria sighed harshly and nodded. “We should probably get to bed. I’ll get out of your hair.”

“No,” Maria whispered, closing her hand around his. “Stay.” Alexander nodded and lied down, with Maria’s head now nestled against his chest and her curls tickling his nose. It sort of reminded him of John, which made his heart ache. He felt her breathing steady and stared at the ceiling until his eyes fell closed.

Alexander woke up the next morning to a bright light flashing in his face. He assumed that it was the sunlight catching from the window until he regained a little more consciousness and heard an iPhone shutter click. He opened his eyes quickly to see a floral phone case and then Theodosia’s bright smile.

“Morning,” he mumbled sleepily, rubbing a hand over his eyes. Maybe Theodosia was harmless, but a weird feeling still settled in his stomach at the thought of being photographed without his permission.

“I’m sorry,” Theodosia looked between him and Maria, who was still in the same exact position. She was dressed smartly, with her hair down and a navy pantsuit and matching heels. “I don’t mean to be creepy or anything, I just like keeping pictures of things that happen in my day. I can delete them if it weirds you out. Did I wake you up?”

“No,” Alexander lied, reaching down to his pocket for his phone to check the time. Maria stirred next to him and he froze before looking back at Theodosia. “And it’s okay. What time is it?”

“7:54,” Theodosia answered softly as she sat on the arm rest by their feet. “I’m supposed to fly out to D.C. today to- Aaron said he explained our…  _ situation _ to you.”

“Yeah,” Alexander nodded. Maria mumbled something incoherent under her breath and nestled closer to him. “My boyfriend and his friends were tormenting him about it and I stepped in. I guess that warranted his trust.”

“Right,” Theodosia looked down at her feet and sighed gently. “Aaron left for work about an hour ago so I should probably go get dressed. I’ve got a plane to catch. It was nice to meet you two.”

“We might be seeing more of each other,” Alexander stated quickly and Theodosia raised an eyebrow. “I took a job with Washington.”

“Congratulations,” Theodosia grinned before hopping to her feet. “Seriously, that’s awesome. I really have to go though, I’m not dressed.” She leaned down to kiss Alexander’s cheek and waved to Maria before rushing off, her heels clicking against the hardwood floor.

Alexander was intending to play Candy Crush until he got bored (which wouldn’t really take too long), but he had gotten a text that he didn’t notice while talking to Theodosia. He couldn’t help but grin when he saw who the sender was.

**-John Laurens-  
John: ** so how was your slumber party with burr?

Alexander decided to answer the question with a selfie with Maria’s head still on his chest and his best confused look, captioning it with ‘ _ I was held captive so I couldn’t annoy Burr with my 4am cup of coffee’ _ . He wasn’t expecting his phone to blow up at that, but the weirder part was that he didn’t recognize the number.

**-John Laurens, Unknown Number, Unknown Number-  
Unknown: **HAM WHY U GOTTA PLAY OUR BOY JLAU LIKE THIS  
 **Unknown:** HE LITERALLY SHOWED ME THE PHOTO AND SAID “look how cute alex looks all sleepy” AND I HAD TO BE THE ONE TO TELL HIM THAT U WEREN’T ALONE  
 **Unknown:** IM WATCHING U NOW FUCKER  
 **Alexander:** JOHN? WHO IS YELLING AT ME?  
 **Unknown:** WELL WOULDN’T U LIKE TO KNOW HUH  
 **John:** sorry i was dying… that’s herc he made me add you to a group message w/laf so he could expose my secrets  
 **Hercules:** U CANT JUST SELL ME OUT LIKE THAT! WORST FRIEND EVER!  
 **John:** wtf you sold me out first  
 **John:** anyways… alex, hercules types in all caps. you get used to it  
 **Hercules:** GUYS I SHOWED THE PIC TO LAF AND THEY HADN’T PUT IN THEIR CONTACTS SO THEY WERE LIKE “WHY IS HAMILTON SLEEPING WITH PEGGY?!?!”  
 **Alexander:** That’s Maria Reynolds? Peggy’s 16?? Also, nothing happened.  
 **Hercules:** WHICH RAISES A QUESTION IF NOTHING HAPPENED WHY ARE YOU SNUGGLY WITH MARIA REYNOLDS SHE’S MARRIED AND PREGGO  
 **John:** indoor voices, herc, you’ll wake her up  
 **Alexander:** Okay, everyone chill and allow me to explain.  
 **Alexander:** I didn’t want to pay for the motel room and John thinks we’ve been moving too fast so I’m staying with Burr. Maria was already there because Burr’s her lawyer and she didn’t want to go home because she hasn’t heard from her husband all day. She can’t sleep if she’s alone so we shared the couch and that’s what happened. And then I woke up to Theo taking pictures so I think Burr thinks we’re screwing and he’s going to try to blackmail me  
 **Hercules:** WAIT. WHO IS THEO?  
 **Alexander:** Oh, that’s Burr’s girlfriend. She’s fucking awesome, actually.  
 **Unknown:** WHAT?!?!  
 **John:** hahaha omg alex you should’ve seen it laf and herc are cuddling and they were just uninterestedly ghosting the convo and then at your message they literally dropped their oversized iphone on herc’s head before aggressively typing out their response  
 **Hercules:** THAT HURT LIKE FUCK BUT I DON’T EVEN CARE SPILL  
 **Lafayette:** Hercules always says that he needs gossip to live, don’t kill him… I like him  
 **Alexander:** Okay, but this stays with us  
 **Lafayette:** Of course!  
 **Alexander:** She’s married, her husband’s in DC  
 **Hercules:** HOLY BALLS!!!! BURR IS A SIDE PIECE LOL  
 **Alexander:** You can’t tell him I told you, okay?  
 **John:** you’re killing all the fun of rubbing this in his face but whatever  
 **Lafayette:** I want to meet the woman that hates herself enough to date Burr  
 **Alexander:** You might already know her. Theodosia Prevost?  
 **Lafayette:** Wait what  
 **Lafayette:** Theodosia Prevost, as in King’s Prevosts?  
 **Lafayette:** That’s  
 **Lafayette:** How you say?  
 **Hercules:** JUICY AS FUCK!  
 **John:** do you see what i have to put up with?  
 **Alexander:** Shut the fuck up, you banished me to Burr’s apartment  
 **John:** touché

Alexander huffed out a laugh at that and Maria opened her eyes slowly, looking back at him blearily. She sat up quickly, rolling her shoulders back and stretching.

“Sorry, did I wake you?” Alexander asked and she turned to face him. Maria shook her head and slid off of the couch past him. “How’d you sleep?”

“Decent,” Maria shrugged. “You know, considering. Are Theodosia and Burr gone?”

“Theo’s leaving now, she has to go to DC,” Alexander answered. Maria raised an eyebrow but didn’t comment. “She works there, she said.”

“Oh,” Maria yawned as she looked through her bag. “I have to go to the orphanage. Act normal and all that, you know?”

“Yeah, I got you,” Alexander nodded. “I don’t wanna just sit idly on Burr’s couch so I’ll probably go wander in the streets or something, I don’t know.” Maria nodded before stepping into the bathroom.

He ditched his old idea of playing Candy Crush, instead choosing to pass the time looking for a new place to live. There were a few places within his price range that he could get on a waiting list for, but a tiny part of him wanted to find a place with a short lease just in case his living arrangements changed in the near future. He honestly wasn’t sure if his relationship with John would ever fully recover, but the optimistically perseverant side of him still let the idea linger. As his stomach growled and he willed himself to give up for the time being and grab some lunch, his phone binged again.

**-John Laurens-  
John: ** hey so i told eliza that i couldn’t grab lunch with her because we really need to talk  
**Alexander:** Oh  
**John:** holy shit sorry i just realized how bad that sounded you can relax  
**John:** i’ve been freaking out about james all day and i kinda need to see you. the sooner the better  
**John:** weird as it may sound, i just feel safer with you around? idk  
**Alexander:** Yeah, of course. That’s understandable. When and where to?  
**John:** there’s a deli on 7 th  and does a half hour from now sound ok?  
**Alexander:** Okay. See you soon?  
**John:** k

The question of who really wanted him and John dead remained in the back of his mind, but he figured that his next smart move was to actually ask John if he had any ideas. Perhaps there was one tiny benefit to having his entire life exposed now.

For the first time in a very long time, Alexander mourned the fact that he didn’t have anything nice to wear. He could’ve gone and bought something, sure, but he was sure that John would laugh at how ridiculous dressing up for a meal at a deli. Or at least the old John would’ve; Alexander wasn’t sure if the new John would actually tease him outside of a group message where they were supposed to look normal.

Maybe Maria was right. The fact that she wasn’t all that upset about Alexander killing her husband, a man that she said she loved, showed that she had issues. He wasn’t sure what John wanting to still be with him even after knowing that he was originally sent to kill him meant. He felt his phone buzz in his pocket and, expecting it to be a text from John, opened it without much thought.

**-Blocked-  
Blocked: ** C u soon!

Attached was a blurry picture of Alexander and John walking through the city together. Alexander was assuming that they were going to Maria’s house, judging from their outfits and how tense they both looked. Alexander fired back with ‘ _What does that mean? Who is this?_ ’ before looking towards the bathroom door.

“Maria?!” he called.

“Yes?” Maria answered from the bathroom.

“Get out here!” Alexander took a shaky breath. “Now?” Maria stepped out, borrowing what Alexander hoped was Theodosia’s robe and her hair wrapped in a towel.

“What is it?” she asked slowly and Alexander handed her the phone. Maria narrowed her eyes and looked back at him. “What does this mean?"

“This was from yesterday,” Alexander explained, forcing his voice to remain calm. “We were on our way to your house. Which means-”

“Someone else is watching you that isn’t James,” Maria finished for him, handing the phone back to him. “Which means I’m under the radar too. Shit.”

“The good thing about this,” Alexander started as he took the phone back, “is that there is one fatal flaw in modern technology.”

“You’re right,” Maria took a deep breath. “Yeah. It’s trackable.”

“I know a forensics expert,” Alexander stated as he found Madison’s number in his contacts. “He was the one that tracked down James. I’ll call him.”

“Great,” Maria looked down at the robe. “I really need to get out of here. No offense, but I need a break from all of your shit.”

“Trust me, no one is in need of a break from my shit more than I am,” Alexander laughed at that and Maria returned a tiny smile.

“Yeah,” Maria agreed. “I’ll see you later.” She straightened the robe before returning to the bathroom and quietly pulling the door closed behind her. Alexander hit the call button and waited until Madison answered at the last possible ring.

“Is everything okay, Hamilton?” he asked, sounding even wearier than the last time he had called.

“I got a weird text,” Alexander started. “It’s from a blocked number. It just says-”

“It’s probably from Reynolds,” Madison answered.

“That wouldn't be possible, Reynolds is dead,” Alexander blurted, moderately regretful when he realized what he had just confessed to.

“Of course he is,” Madison groaned. Alexander recognized that tone; it was the same one that he used whenever Alexander disclosed an opinion that he didn’t agree with. Of course it was much more intense than when he had mentioned that he was pro-gun control, but the outlying message was still in tact.

“I didn’t exactly plan on killing him,” Alexander felt the need to clarify. “I mean, I figured that it would likely come to that. But it wasn’t really thought out or anything, I just was protecting myself. And John, more importantly.”

“I don’t need you to defend yourself to me,” Madison stated. Alexander could picture him slowly rubbing at his temples, which is something that Jefferson always joked that he only did when they interacted. “I’ve already broken more laws than I care to think about in the process of helping you and I don’t even really like you that much. So your reasoning really doesn’t matter to me.”

“Okay,” Alexander stated slowly. He wondered how Madison couldn’t possibly be curious about his motive. The guy made a living studying people who did similar things; there had to at least be some professional curiosity buried in there.

“Great,” Madison stated, most likely with a weak smile that definitely didn’t reach his eyes. “Hopefully the next time we talk it won’t be about this stuff.”

“It’ll be at our college reunion,” Alexander reassured him with a tentative laugh. He could sense Madison rolling his eyes as the dial tone sounded in his ear. “Huh. Okay. Bye to you too then.” He straightened his shirt and stepped outside, beginning his walk to the deli.

He was going to be late to his meal with John, which he was now freaking out about. The prospect of seeing John had provided him with a sense of calm before, but things had changed. John now held the biggest piece of the puzzle of Alexander’s life and just thinking about that scared the living daylights out of him.

Alexander always held the belief that if you wanted to make something work you had to fight tooth and nail for it. A large part of him was dying to fight for John, but the annoying rational voice in his head (which had started to sound suspiciously like Burr ever since he had met the guy, which irritated him even more) insisted that they couldn’t possibly work through something so catastrophic and come out okay.

If he wanted to keep John in his life, it could only be done if they were simply friends until all of this was over. If John still wanted a relationship after they were both safe, Alexander would give it his best shot in a heartbeat. He’d sooner give up the kissing and cuddling part of John than the entire package.

It wasn’t helping that John looked so radiant with sunlight glistening on his cheeks and his teeth worrying his lower lip as he tinkered with something on his laptop. Alexander knocked lightly on the table and John jumped violently before fixing him with an irritated look.

“You can’t do that,” he mumbled as he closed his laptop and tucked it away. “I’m probably going to be jumpy for the rest of my life thanks to you.”

“I’m so sorry,” Alexander answered sincerely as he took the seat next to John. He had never taken apologies lightly and he managed to hang onto the belief that one should never apologize unless they truly mean it throughout the whole mess that was his life.

“Eh, whatever,” John shrugged before taking a bite of his sandwich.

“So I’ve been mulling over this all day,” Alexander started, folding his arms to his chest. “And I realized that, even if I started following you around with a clipboard again, I could never understand your life as well as you do. So do you have any idea who would want you dead?”

“Those ‘gays go to hell’ protesters,” John’s eyebrows had gone up at the word ‘again’ but he had apparently chosen not to comment. “Literally anyone that worked at South Carolina Catholic schools.”

“John, I’m being serious,” Alexander huffed at that and John nodded.

“I know,” he stated softly. “Sometimes, I crack jokes when I’m uncomfortable. I really have no idea who would go through all the effort of hiring you and Reynolds just to kill me.”

“Technically,” Alexander held a hand out to cut him off, “Reynolds was hired to kill me.”

“For not killing me, so I doubt they would’ve stopped him if he decided to take matters in his own hands,” John pointed out. Alexander nodded at that and looked down at his hands. “Sorry I wasn’t more help.”

“Don’t apologize, I’ll fix this,” Alexander shook his head quickly, his gaze still fixed to his hands. He took a shaky breath and he could almost feel the worry radiating off of John.

“Alex?” he asked softly, reaching across the table for his hand. Alexander flinched and quickly dropped his hands in his lap. He didn’t deserve for John to care about him this much. “What’s wrong?”

“We can’t pretend that all of this is okay,” Alexander whispered softly. He couldn’t look at John’s face as he tried to process what he had just said, what he was about to say. “This isn’t a healthy relationship. Healthy is the least you deserve, John, I can’t keep dragging you further down the rabbit hole.”

“I’ve dealt with my fair share of fucked up.” Alexander could feel John’s piercing gaze, even if he was refusing to meet his eye.

“What does that even mean?” Alexander asked. John remained silent and Alexander ran a trembling hand over his eyes. “I was at the diner because someone gave me ten grand to kill you and I was stalking you. I shot someone in your apartment. How do you get more fucked up that that?” He paused for a moment and looked back at John. Which turned out to be a huge mistake, since he could feel an imaginary knife twist in his heart. “I can’t pretend that I’m okay with what I’m doing to you anymore.”

“What you’re doing to me?” John repeated softly. “Alex, what you’re doing to me is-” His eyes widened like a deer caught in headlights and Alexander wasn’t sure if he wanted to hear whatever John was about to say before he came to his senses. “You know what? Whatever. You’re right. Maybe we’re a bad idea right now.”

“Okay,” Alexander whispered, fighting to keep his voice strong. “I’m so sorry.”

“I don’t want your apology,” John scoffed as he stood up. “I want you to realize that there’s a way to stop being fucked up.” Alexander wasn’t sure if John knew that his words felt like a punch in the gut, or if he even cared.

If he was doing the right thing by setting John free, why did the bells clashing against the deli door as it slammed shut make the back of his throat burn?  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I say this after every chapter but holy shit, I'm so sorry! Please don't hate me
> 
> Again, because I have no shame, I'm on [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com) or on twitter @linandt0nic


	10. Washington DC

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Hello, Alexander. It’s George Washington. I have some unexpected things to attend to so I’m afraid I won’t make it home this weekend. Meetings and such. I was wondering if you could possibly fly up here this weekend instead? We’ll all be able to go home on Monday. I realize that this is last minute but we could really use all hands on deck. Please call me back as soon as you get this so that I can book your flight for you. Thank you and I hope to see you soon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god, I'm so sorry! I was planning on having this done by Election Day but clearly /that/ didn't happen. I haven't had the time (or motivation I guess?) to sit down and get this out. The new semester is finally clearing up and I had some free time to get this done so... here ya go! For anyone still keeping up with this fic, your patience is phenomenal. I'll really try to be better in the future about it

Alexander woke up the next day to a voicemail from a number he didn’t recognize. He was expecting it to be one of the Schuylers calling to yell at him or Madison using another burner or even his hiring party getting sloppy. Everything hurt too much for him to particularly care and played the message begrudgingly.

_“Hello, Alexander. It’s George Washington. I have some unexpected things to attend to so I’m afraid I won’t make it home this weekend. Meetings and such. I was wondering if you could possibly fly up here this weekend instead? We’ll all be able to go home on Monday. I realize that this is last minute but we could really use all hands on deck. Please call me back as soon as you get this so that I can book your flight for you. Thank you and I hope to see you soon.”_

Alexander quickly rubbed the sleepiness out of his eyes and forced the lingering thoughts of John and his hurt voice to the back of his mind. He needed to bring his A game and he couldn’t do that if he gave into this pain he was feeling. He called Washington back as he started to pack up all of his things.

“Washington,” he answered and Alexander could hear people chattering in the background.

“Yes, hello,” Alexander said quickly. The sound of Washington’s voice made his problems feel insignificant. “It’s Alexander. Hamilton.”

“I’m glad to hear from you, son.” Alexander felt his heart swell at those simple words and he was glad that he was alone and Washington couldn’t see his idiotic smile. “Are you able to join us in DC this weekend?”

“Yes,” Alexander nodded. John would be safe for three days if he stayed with Hercules and Lafayette. Only a dumb hitman would go after him with two other people around and this hiring party wasn’t stupid enough to hire a dumb hitman. Besides, Alexander could use the break from his beloved city. “I can fly up whenever you need me.”

“That’s perfect, thank you,” Washington sounded relieved. Alexander couldn’t describe how wonderful it felt to actually be needed by someone that was doing something good, as opposed to just wanting to kill some angry, usually bald menace to society. “I’ll have Angelica book your flight. Is it okay if she forwards you the information?”

“Yes, of course,” Alexander answered quickly. Angelica would probably ask him about John, which wouldn’t exactly be a fun conversation. “Thank you.”

“No,” Washington breathed out a soft laugh, “thank _you_ , Alexander. You’re really saving me here. I’ll see you soon.”

“I’ll see you soon,” Alexander echoed before the line went dead. The conversation was barely a minute, but it did miracles for Alexander’s mood. It made the task of calling John to inform him that he wasn’t going to be around for the weekend much less daunting.

“Alex?” John asked slowly when he picked up the phone. Alexander felt his mood deflate slightly at the nickname, which he had found cute before he terminated the relationship. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, everything’s fine,” Alexander reassured him as he changed into his suit (which still didn’t fit right and made him feel a bit like he was twelve again and going to his mother’s funeral in a hand-me-down suit from his brother). As fine as things could be after breaking up with a guy for his own good, he thought to himself. “Washington wants me to fly up to DC this weekend.”

“Oh,” John dragged out the vowel slightly. “That’s cool. Congratulations.”

“Yeah, thanks,” Alexander leaned against the wall. “I just wanted to make sure that you were going to be okay.”

“What do you mean?” John asked with a scorned laugh. “That I’m not going to get shot up by James Reynolds 2.0? I’ll try my hardest, I swear.”

“John, I’m serious,” Alexander rubbed at his head gently, feeling the beginnings of a tension headache. “Just… don’t go anywhere alone, okay? Keep yourself surrounded by people.” 

“You know things are weird when your ex is giving you advice over the phone about how to not get killed,” John stated softly.

“I know what I’m talking about here,” Alexander sighed. The line went silent for a moment and he continued, “I worry about you, okay? Like it or not, you’re more vulnerable when I’m not here. Hercules is a big, daunting guy. Lafayette is French, which makes them a little intimidating. Just play sad about us and they’ll take you under their wings.”

“You idiot, I wouldn’t have to _play_ anything,” John snapped and Alexander bit his lip softly. “And I haven’t told them. It’s kinda embarrassing, you know?”

“Right,” Alexander breathed out gently. 

“So now that we cleared that up,” John started, “I have to get back to work. Thanks for the heads up or whatever you wanna call it. I’m glad you care.” 

“John…” Alexander sighed but the line had already gone dead. He pocketed his phone and finished packing, determined to not think about John for the rest of the weekend. That resolve lasted for about five minutes and it was shattered when Burr came back inside. 

“Alexander,” he started, sounding exhausted. “Laurens is being even testier than usual. Lee might kill him. What’s going on with your boyfriend?” 

“He’s not my boyfriend anymore,” Alexander explained, staring down at the ground. His lower lip trembled lightly and he folded his arms tightly across his chest. His tendency to wear his heart on his sleeve had its consequences at times and embarrassing displays of emotions were one of the top ones. At that moment, a small part of him wished that he possessed even the tiniest bit of control.

“Oh,” Burr said softly. He sounded sympathetic and Alexander’s gaze rose to see his eyebrows furrowed together. “Sorry. You seem to really like him.”

“Yeah,” Alexander rolled his eyes with a soft scoff, “no shit, Burr. But it’s to protect him, it was the right thing to do.” Burr nodded solemnly and Alexander grabbed his backpack. “What are you doing here? Half day?”

“I eat lunch at home on Fridays,” Burr explained. “Where are you going? You can stay as long as you want to.”

“Lucky for you, I have to go to DC,” Alexander explained with a shrug. “Washington wants me to spend the weekend up there.”

“Oh,” Burr gave him a gentle pat on the shoulder. It felt stinted, which was confirmed by the look on Burr’s face. “Congratulations. It’s your official first day on the job.”

“Yeah,” Alexander smiled at that. “Wish me luck. I’ll say hi to Theodosia to you.” Burr’s expression darkened and Alexander felt a flicker of tension in the room. The atmosphere resolved to normal before he could really process it and the faint smile returned to Burr’s face. 

“Thank you,” Burr said quickly and Alexander was beginning to wonder if he imagined that moment. “And good luck. I have to grab something to eat.”

“I have to go anyways,” Alexander looked down at his phone to check the time before widening his eyes. “Fuck! Right fucking now! Bye, Burr. Can you explain where I went to Maria?”

“Of course. Goodbye, Alexan-“ The door slammed before Burr could finish his goodbyes.

Sitting idly in a cab, it turned out, really wasn’t the best thing for Alexander’s mental state. He passed the time drumming his fingers against his leg until pulling up his contact list. He found Madison’s name and typed out a quick message.

_Have you found anything?_

Madison didn’t answer until he had already boarded his flight, which was moderately irritating. The only good thing is that the suspense kept Alexander’s brain too busy to think about John or Washington for the rest of the ride.

 **-Madison-  
Madison: **The email was sent from a cell phone connected to a nearby library’s wifi. I tracked the number and it was a dead end. I’ll keep on it but I’m not sure if I’ll find anything  
 **Alexander:** Okay thanks!

Alexander wasn’t sure if he expected the email to lead to anything. Whoever this was was careful; if they made the switch to technology they would make sure that it wasn’t traceable. They were too smart for that. Alexander could really use a break from smart people trying to kill him.

This trip would be a good thing.

Angelica had been considerate enough to get him a window seat so he could stare at the clouds for the entire flight. He certainly wasn’t expecting to waste that opportunity until he heard a familiar voice.

“Hammy! What are you doing flying out to DC?” 

On second thought, an entire hour sitting next to Thomas Jefferson sounded like his worst nightmare. Alexander had the urge to kill Angelica for not checking who had the seat next door. 

“Hi, Jefferson,” Alexander sighed, turning to face the grinning man sitting next to him. The guy didn’t exactly like him so it was weird to see him so happy. “Going to DC?”

“No, I’m just here for the airplane food,” Jefferson rolled his eyes and brushed his hair back. “So did you figure out your thing with the photos?” 

“I- we can’t talk about that here,” Alexander hissed, folding his arms and glaring at Jefferson.

“Come on, Ham,” Jefferson wiggled his eyebrows with a devious smirk and leaned closer. Alexander was hit with a whiff on his cologne and wrinkled his nose in distaste. “You know you love oversharing. Just tell me.”

“Get away or I’ll get a douchebag cologne headache,” Alexander shoved him back and leaned against the window. Jefferson threw his head back in laughter and a few people turned to look at him.

“Really?” Jefferson grinned. “That’s the best you can do? ‘Douchebag Cologne Headache’?” He put air quotes around the words and Alexander huffed softly. “You must really be getting rusty. In college, you were actually kind of good at insulting people.”

“I’m tired,” Alexander defended as he reached in his backpack. “I was planning to get some shit done or sleep or something. So if you promise to shut up for the rest of the flight, I’ll answer your question.” Jefferson’s smile turned giddy and he nodded quickly. “Fine. Yes and no. My entire fucking life is like that medicine that just treats symptoms without actually getting to the root cause.”

“What does that even mean?” Jefferson asked with a quirked brow.

“I’m assuming Madison told you about Reynolds,” Alexander started softly. Jefferson nodded and Alexander brushed his hair out of his eyes before continuing. “Well, Reynolds is gone now but someone had hired him to come after me in the first place so it’s not over.”

“What do you mean ‘Reynolds is gone now’?” Jefferson asked before gasping. “Holy shit. Did you whack James Reynolds, Alley Cat?”

“Say it a little louder, why don’t you?” Alexander snapped as he quickly checked over his shoulder for anyone that may have been eavesdropping. “And I’ve always hated that nickname, by the way. We’re not in college anymore; can’t we retire it?”

“You may have a boyfriend now but that doesn’t erase your scandalous college career,” Jefferson shrugged and Alexander quickly averted his eyes, avoiding his scrutiny when he put two and two together. “Oh my fucking god, Ham. You cheated on your boy, didn’t you?”

“No!” Alexander hissed, glaring daggers back at Jefferson. For his part, he seemed to be attempting to look empathetic. “I’m not like that anymore, okay? But John knows some things now so I broke it off.” Jefferson threw his head back in laughter, which only made Alexander’s chest tighten and his vision go red. “Wow, maybe not all of us have matured since college. Seriously, what’s your problem? What’s so funny?”

“You,” Jefferson wiped his eyes, even though Alexander was sure he hadn’t actually shed any tears from his mocking, and Alexander continued to glare at him. “You’re a fucking dumbass. You obviously like this John kid but when you two have to face your first problem you run for the hills. One of the great things about a partner is that they don’t give up on you because of your problems.”

“Easy for you to say,” Alexander snapped back. “You live in a little bubble where overworked maids do all your dirty work while you step on the backs of ‘lesser people’ until you reached your goal. And then you go around saying that everyone who hasn’t succeeded like you are stupid or lazy because they weren’t born with your Presidential pedigree. You have absolutely no regard to how the real world works. When have you ever had a real problem in your life? I mean, one that wasn’t _‘oh no! Jemmy accidentally threw my dry clean only shirt in the washer but you know what? We’re going to work through this because we’re in love and that’s what you do when you’re in love, you forgive and forget everything!’_ Which was probably the conclusion your maid came up with because you can’t think for yourself.” Jefferson raised an eyebrow at Alexander’s impression and held out a fist.

“You got my voice right, I’m so proud,” he stated patronizingly, grabbing Alexander’s wrist to return his requested fist bump. “Respect!” 

“Are you going to let me sleep or not?” Alexander asked, a bit peeved about how Jefferson wasn’t angry that he just ranted about how entitled he was.

“Sure, I definitely won’t draw a mustache on you while you do,” Jefferson flashed a grin that was probably supposed to be charming. Alexander’s lip upturned in distaste and he put his headphones in, effectively tuning out Jefferson’s antics for the rest of the flight.

He was thankful when the plane landed and they were finally able to part ways.

Angelica said that Washington’s driver, some guy named Nate Greene, would meet him by baggage claim holding a sign. It took a while to find the guy and he was half tempted to ask for ID, in case the person that hired him had hacked into his email or something and decided to impersonate Nate Greene and drove him to an abandoned warehouse to shoot him down instead of to wherever Washington was. One look at Nate Greene, however, and Alexander was sure that he could easily overpower him if the need arose. He couldn’t believe that his life had come to judging people on their stature on the off chance that they decided to attack him. 

He really could’ve used that nap. Fucking Jefferson.

“Alexander Hamilton?” Nate asked when he had seen him reading the sign.

“Yeah,” Alexander smiled, extending a hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Greene.”

“Please, just call me Nate,” he shook his hand with a smile before leading him to the car.

He wasn’t sure if John cared much about him or his safety at the moment but he decided to text him anyways to tell him that he landed. When John texted back a simple thumbs up emoji, Alexander’s fears were confirmed. The only comforting thing from that was that John was still alive and well.

“You know,” Alexander started as he looked out the window, “I’ve never actually been to anywhere in America outside of New York.”

“Really?” Nate asked, looking at Alexander through his rearview mirror.

“Yeah,” Alexander smiled. “I mean, I’ve always wanted to. I just haven’t had the time. Or a good reason, really. Does that mean that I’m simply a New Yorker as opposed to a true red-blooded American?”

“I think they go hand in hand,” Nate shrugged with a small smile.

“Americans don’t often realize how huge everything is here,” Alexander watched as they sped past a skyscraper with an awed smile. “I grew up in the West Indies. Nevis, to be exact. It’s tiny, about 36 square miles. I remember being super excited when my mom, my brother, and I got to take a boat to Saint Kitts. Everything seemed larger than life there, which is absolutely ridiculous because it’s only about 175 square miles. So I was completely stunned when I first got here and New York is only one tiny part of the United States.”

“You’d love Texas then,” Nate joked. “Everything’s bigger there.”

“Yeah, but Texas wouldn’t like me much,” Alexander laughed softly. “I wouldn’t last a day without someone gunning me down for running my mouth.”

“You know, Mr. Hamilton, I sometimes talk a lot when I’m nervous,” Nate smiled gently. “Are you nervous about meeting Mr. Washington? He has that whole ‘larger than life’ persona but he’s one of the kindest people I’ve ever had the pleasure of working for, even if I’m just his personal driver.”

“No, I’m always like this,” Alexander answered dismissively. “Silence freaks me out and I don’t have a filter. It can be a disaster at times, believe me. Actually, I’m more nervous about blowing my shot. Politics have always spoken to me so this may be an opportunity of a lifetime. Getting this job may have been a stroke of good luck, but I had to fight tooth and nail for everything that led up to this point. I might not get a second chance at it.” 

“Right,” Nate said softly. The rest of the car ride passed in pretty much the same fashion, with Alexander keeping conversation going while Nate nodded along and made an occasional comment. His favorite had to be ‘Angelica did say you had a way with words’. Eventually, however, Nate pulled up to a rather large building and smiled back at Alexander. “Mr. Washington and his staff are all on the fifth floor. I believe he wants to meet with you in person.”

“Okay,” Alexander smiled and slipped him a fair sized tip, mostly because he knew he wasn’t the easiest person to be stuck in a car with and he stayed nice to him. “Thank you.” He stepped out of the car and Nate sped off with a quick wave. Alexander took a deep breath and straightened his tie before stepping into the building.

When Alexander was beginning to realize that ‘the fifth floor’ wasn’t exactly specific directions, since each floor easily had fifty rooms, he heard heels clicking against the floor.

“Alexander,” Angelica smiled, stepping closer to him. She eyed him with something between a laugh and a scoff. “You made it. Was Mr. Greene okay for you?”

“Yeah, I liked him,” Alexander nodded quickly. “He was nice.”

“Follow me,” Angelica nodded towards the elevator and they both stepped inside. “You know, I think I like your other suit better.”

“It got lost in the fire,” Alexander pushed his sleeves up with an annoyed side glance at Angelica. “With all of my other possessions. I had to improvise here.”

“Got it,” Angelica stepped out of the elevator at the fifth floor and Alexander followed, trying to keep his awestruck expression neutral. George Washington was standing in front of the room with impeccable posture. Alexander had always thought that he had pretty good posture, but he found himself pulling his shoulders back when Washington graced him with a quick glance.

“Alexander,” he stated and the entire committee, which wasn’t all that big, turned towards him. Angelica sent him a parting smile before returning to her seat and Alexander nodded in greeting at everyone.

“Hamilton,” another voice echoed and, for a brief moment, Alexander had a sinking feeling that Jefferson was in the room as well before recognizing the French accent. “You made it. Sit by me.” Alexander stepped forward to take the seat next to Lafayette, mostly to ask them why they was here in the first place and who was keeping John company, when Washington shook his head.

“Actually, I want Hamilton to sit over there,” Washington pointed to an empty chair and Alexander felt like he was being chastised by a grade school teacher for disrupting class. He gave the group a small smile before taking the seat that Washington requested. Washington gave him a small nod before continuing to speak. “As I was saying, I ask for your utmost discretion in regards to this meeting. Very few people know about my plan so this conversation doesn’t leave this room.” Alexander could’ve sworn that Washington paused to meet his gaze and he nodded quickly. With all of this secrecy, maybe he wasn’t cut out for politics after all. “Lafayette, do you know anyone else that’s planning on running?”

“Henry Laurens, sir,” Lafayette answered with a quick glance towards Alexander. Alexander narrowed his eyes at the familiar name and Washington huffed out a short sigh. 

“Are you still friends with his son?” Washington asked.

“Yes,” Lafayette confirmed, quirking a quick brow in Alexander’s direction. “But I think Hamilton has more of an… what’s the word? _Influence_ over John than I do. If I used that correctly and you understand what-”

“Well,” Alexander cut them off before they could finish that thought. “I used to. Not so much anymore.”

“What?” Angelica asked while Lafayette mumbled some choice words under their breath in French.

“We had a short-lived relationship,” Alexander explained, his cheeks burning at the venomous glares that Lafayette and Angelica were sending him. “Sometimes things don’t work out.”

“What the hell happened?” Angelica blurted before looking back at Washington. “Sorry, sir.”

“You three may continue this conversation on your coffee break,” Washington’s tone was stern, but Alexander didn’t miss his quick, bemused smile.

“But besides Henry Laurens,” Lafayette continued, turning their back to Alexander. He sighed softly and snuck a glance at Angelica, who was also giving him a cold shoulder. “The other candidates are… how you say?... comedic? Laurens is likely to be your opponent.”

“Okay,” Washington rubbed his temples and took a breath. “I might not agree with Henry on much of anything, but he’s an adept politician. Beating him is possible, but it won’t be easy.”

“I’m sorry, sir,” Alexander cut in and he could’ve sworn that he saw Angelica roll her eyes, “but what exactly are you running for?”

“Oh, right,” Washington cracked a tiny smile. “Alexander hasn’t heard the news yet. I’m running for president, kid.”

“President?” Alexander repeated and he could already feel the awkward air in the room fade away. “Wow. That’s wonderful. You’re going to be wonderful!”

“I sure hope I have the chance to try to prove that,” Washington answered. “We have a long haul before I’m even considered a candidate. Which is where all of you come in. Alex, I realized that you said that financial law wasn’t the right direction for you, but the experience is-”

“I’d be helping the best possible candidate for president,” Alexander reassured him quickly. “That’s the right direction for me right there. Sir.”

“Kiss ass,” Angelica mumbled under her breath before raising her hand. Washington nodded in acknowledgement and she stood up. “If I may. You have an advantage here. CNN put a poll out and 76% of Americans were unsatisfied with his rule. Those numbers-”

“Are good, but skewed,” Washington answered. “You were reaching out to the wrong group, Miss Schuyler. Do you think John would help us, Alexander?”

“I don’t know,” Alexander started, pulling a face that Lafayette and Angelica’s scorning glares clearly didn’t miss. “You should ask Lafayette, they know him better than I do.”

“He disagrees with his father on everything,” Lafayette answered with a small shrug. They seemed smug about the fact that John hadn’t told Alexander anything about his relationship with his father. “They don’t speak. I do not know if John knows that he’s running.”

“Henry was terrible to him, John would be the most determined to fight against him,” Angelica answered softly. She seemed tense about this admission, like Alexander didn’t deserve this particular tidbit about John’s life after he broke his heart. Which he supposed he couldn’t argue with. “He used to stage protests against his father before he moved to New York.”

“Can someone call John?” Washington asked with a soft sigh. Lafayette and Angelica’s gaze found Alexander, who was staring down at his hands.

“He doesn’t want to talk to me,” Alexander mumbled, although his brain was spinning. Would Henry Laurens be desperate enough to order a hit on his son to secure his spot in the White House? He could rake up the sympathy vote if he played his cards correctly and, based on what Alexander knew from his prior research on John, the man was a manipulative jerk. It seemed to make sense, but maybe Alexander was just grasping at straws. “Laf, you call him.”

“Okay,” Lafayette mumbled, pulling a face at the nickname as they put the phone to their ear. Alexander had been too distracted to remember that he probably lost the right to call them that. “Laurens? I need to talk to you about-“ They broke off and met Angelica’s gaze with a small frown.

“What?” Alexander asked desperately. He shouldn’t have left John by himself. He should’ve told Hercules about their break up so he’d turn into some overprotective papa bear. He would never be able to forgive himself if John had been hurt, or worse.

“A little girl answered the phone,” Lafayette finally looked at Alexander with something that wasn’t pure disdain. “She says she’s John’s daughter.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As stated previously, I'm on [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com) or on twitter @linandt0nic if you wanted to come talk about Hamilton, how mad you are at me for not updating for months and then leaving this at a terrible cliffhanger, or anything else


	11. Southern Hospitality

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I’ll go talk to him,” Alexander blurted and Lafayette’s glare hardened again. “Get any info that I can. I can fly down to South Carolina.”
> 
> “He doesn’t want to talk to you,” Lafayette answered with a small shrug, any lingering confusion on their face quickly replaced by coldness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! So this chapter was meant to be much shorter and combined with the next one, but then I realized that it wouldn't be that easy to get a flight in the middle of a hurricane so I had to split it haha. So... whatever this is was born

“His daughter?” Alexander repeated slowly, staring back at Lafayette in shock. They looked almost as surprised as he did, which made him feel less shitty about John not mentioning this very important tidbit to him. But Lafayette had never made an effort to stalk John, so the feeling didn’t last. “Like, a child?”

“Would you mind giving the phone to your father, darling?” Lafayette asked calmly, despite the fact that their lip seemed to be permanently curled in confusion.

“John’s been with a girl then?” Angelica whispered to Alexander, momentarily forgetting her anger to discuss any sorts of gossip she could get her hands on.

“First I’ve heard of it,” Alexander answered honestly. 

“Laurens?” Lafayette asked and Alexander’s attention flew to them. “Why would you not tell me about your daughter?” Alexander was dying to hear the other end of this conversation, but all he could see were Lafayette’s gentle nods. “Yes. Did she fly to New York to see you or-? I see.” They moved the phone away from their mouth before muttering, “He’s in South Carolina with his parents, his daughter, and his daughter’s mother.”

Alexander needed to share his theory with John and, for that to happen, he needed to get to him. Plus, he felt like he was about to hurl and that would not make for a good 'first day in DC' story. He started to get up, but the harsh look that Washington shot at him pushed him right back into his seat. He glanced down at his phone before typing out a quick message. 

**-John Laurens-  
Alexander Hamilton: ** I have to tell you something important. But why didn’t you tell me that you’re in SC? 

“Yes,” Lafayette answered a moment later, shooting a weary glance in Alexander’s direction. “Hamilton is here. How did you guess, hm? Okay, I’ll let him know. Thank you. But I was actually wondering if you were aware that your father was running for president?” They paused before looking at Washington and shaking their head. Alexander figured that John would want to stop his father from becoming president, so he was more preoccupied by what he had said about him to Lafayette. “He is upset by this news. He’s mumbling some things that I am not comfortable repeating in front of you. I think he’s willing to help us out.” 

“I’ll go talk to him,” Alexander blurted and Lafayette’s glare hardened again. “Get any info that I can. I can fly down to South Carolina.”

“He doesn’t want to talk to you,” Lafayette answered with a small shrug, any lingering confusion on their face quickly replaced by coldness.

“I’m sorry,” Alexander answered softly. “But I think I can talk to him. I don’t like how things ended between us anyway.” His stomach twisted at the thought of manipulating Lafayette and Angelica into agreeing to this plan. They just wanted what was best for John. So did Alexander, and he was the only one that knew that being as far away from South Carolina as possible was it.

“You said that he was more likely to listen to Alexander,” Washington pointed out. “I’ll call Nathaniel.”

“He can be persuasive,” Angelica finished Washington’s thoughts with a look of defeat. “I don’t know if you know this, but I usually don’t offer to help someone get a job after one conversation.”

“Tell him I’m catching the next flight to South Carolina.”

“He heard you and he says to stay in DC,” Lafayette stated but Washington had already given him a nod of approval. “Don’t you dare hurt him, Hamilton.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Alexander answered before rushing out. He turned the corner and started to head towards the elevator when he collided with someone else. “Fuck, I-“

“Oh!” Theodosia Prevost stumbled backwards, quickly catching her balance and somehow managing not to spill the plate of coffee she was carrying all over herself.

“I’m sorry,” Alexander started, reaching over to catch the plate while she caught her balance. “I wasn’t watching where I was going.”

“Luckily for me, it’s iced coffee,” Theodosia’s smile was tense and Alexander figured out why a moment later, when another man approached her. 

“Hon,” the man greeted with a swift kiss on Theodosia’s kiss. She handed him a cup of coffee and he turned his attention towards Alexander. “Hello. I don’t think I’ve seen you here before, do you work for King?”

“No,” Alexander greeted with a polite smile, trying not to make eye contact with a very worried looking Theodosia. “Washington, actually. I’m Alexander Hamilton, I’m a new hire if you couldn’t tell.”

“Jacques Prevost,” the man shook his hand firmly, “and this is my darling wife, Theodosia.” The smile that Theodosia shot her husband could’ve fooled anyone that hadn’t seen how content she looked in Burr’s company.

“It’s a pleasure,” Theodosia greeted softly, refusing to make eye contact.

“It most certainly is,” Alexander gave her the same smile so he didn’t raise any suspicions. He snuck a glance at Theodosia, who looked distinctly uncomfortable. “I hate to cut this meeting short, but I have an errand to run.”

“It’s alright, I’m sure we’ll see each other around again, Mr. Hamilton,” Jacques nodded politely. Theodosia echoed the nod and finally met Alexander’s gaze, as if she finally understood that he wasn’t about to let anything slip about Burr.

“Yes,” Alexander confirmed, returning Theodosia’s gaze with a smile. “I’ll try to keep any future runs ins figurative.”

“Thanks for that,” Theodosia breathed out a soft laugh before she and Jacques turned on their heel. Alexander made a mental note to tell Burr that Theodosia was cuter with him than her husband the next time they talked, but right now he needed to be in South Carolina for John.

Nate Greene was there about five minutes after he found his way back to the front of the building and Alexander got into the car quickly.

“That really didn’t take long,” Nate stated with a glance up at the building before meeting Alexander’s gaze. “Is everything okay?”

“With Washington? Yes, of course,” Alexander answered as Nate started the car. “You heard that Washington wants to run for president, right?”

“Actually, no,” Nate answered coolly. “But honestly, I’m not surprised. He’d be wonderful.” 

“Shit,” Alexander cursed. “Don’t tell anyone. He hasn’t announced it to the public yet. But Henry Laurens is thinking about running and I’m going to talk to the guy that would be most miserable if he won.”

“You mean Uncle Sam?” Nate asked jokingly and Alexander cracked a smile.

“His son,” Alexander explained quickly. “We’re… sort of friends. Hopefully. I just need to speak with him, that’s all. See if he’ll help us take down Henry. You know, so Washington can be president.” He pulled out his phone and sent out another text.

 **-James Madison-**  
Alexander Hamilton: I need you to find out everything you can about Henry Laurens. Send anything you find to me so I can sift through it for anything suspicious.  
**James Madison:** Henry Laurens?  
**Alexander Hamilton:** He’s a congressman in South Carolina. And John’s father. Just send me everything you can find, okay?  
**James Madison:** I’ll try. I can’t believe my life has come to doing background checks on government officials.  
**Alexander Hamilton:** You get used to it. Thanks.  
**James Madison:** Hope not 

“You’re going to South Carolina, right?” Nate asked after a moment. Alexander nodded his head and he breathed out a quick laugh. “Good luck.”

“Yeah,” Alexander gave him a small smile in return. “Thanks.” He knew that Nate had no idea how much he needed luck if he was going to make this crazy idea work.

He made plans to sleep during his flight, but he was pinned in a very compact middle seat in between a mom with a relentless baby and a middle aged woman with a greasy bag from McDonalds and a two liter bottle of Diet Coke. Which left pulling up an old playlist on his phone and occasionally reminding himself to take a deep breath to keep his worry from spiraling into insanity.

The flight to Charleston was short, but Alexander was anxious to get off the plane. He only had a small briefcase with his necessities, so he headed towards the front gates and pulled out his phone to text John about the best way to get to his place.

“Alex,” a familiar voice greeted and he was hit with an array of emotions. He was overwhelmed as he turned to face John, who looked way more put together than he was expecting. His heart ached as he sent him a nervous smile.

“Hi,” he greeted, simultaneously ecstatic to see him and wishing that he hadn’t shown up so he’d have time to mentally prepare to see him. He looked good, with his hair tied back in a tight ponytail and wearing a blue T shirt covered by a leather jacket and fitted black jeans. “I wasn’t expecting you to pick me up, I was going to take a cab or something.” 

“This isn’t New York,” John pointed out, his lips upturning in a ghost of a smile. “I don’t live too far anyways. C’mon.” 

“Okay,” Alexander asked before holding the door open for him and nodding for him to step through. John’s glare wasn’t as biting as he seemed to intend, but he walked through the door anyways. “Is Herc watching Muffin?”

“Yeah,” John smiled lightly at the mention of his dog. He was like a proud parent and it was simultaneously ridiculous and cute as hell. “I felt awful about leaving her behind, she’s been so clingy since… y’know. But she’s always loved Herc.”

“Yeah, he probably spoils her,” Alexander found himself smiling despite himself.

“Oh, yeah,” John laughed, averting his eyes elsewhere. He seemed to be avoiding looking at Alexander smile. “He’s not as bad as Laf though. They spend more on their poodle’s dog groomer than I make in a month. Muffin usually goes for the ride and comes back looking like a fucking purse dog.”

“She’s not a purse dog, she’s a warrior,” Alexander bumped his arm gently, which caused John to visibly tense up. 

_Right. Can’t do that anymore._

“Uh, yeah,” John mumbled. “Definitely.”

“So quick question,” Alexander asked after a brief lapse. Silence never boded well with him. “Is your father in town?”

“Why? Are you afraid he’s gonna come after you with a shotgun for breaking up with his kid?” John asked as he tucked his hands in his pockets. “Because he doesn’t know about us. As far as he knows, you’re a friend that came to check on me after I packed up and flew down here for mysterious reasons.”

“The shotgun thing has crossed my mind. But maybe not for those reasons,” Alexander answered softly as he watched John unlock a beat up old car that looked like it came straight out of the 60s. John looked up at that and raised an eyebrow.

“What do you mean?” he asked slowly, but Alexander shook his head.

“Maybe we should talk about this in the car?” he suggested. John shrugged and got in the car before turning towards Alexander with an irritated look.

“What is it, Alex?” he asked, seeming to have to force himself to refrain from rolling his eyes. “You didn’t come all this way just to ask me if I supported my father running for president. He didn’t even tell me he was running, which shows how fucking close we are.”

“Do you have any siblings in New York?” Alexander cut in.

“Yeah,” John answered slowly. “My sister Martha is up in Rochester. She’s married, in case you were planning on making your way through my family.” He narrowed his eyes and rolled down his window to pay for his parking ticket. “What’s that look?”

“The more I think about it,” Alexander explained softly, “I’m starting to think that the person that hired me to kill you was the same person that hired me to kill Leroy.”

“Who’s Leroy?” John asked before nodding slowly at the look that Alexander gave him. “Was he your first?”

“The letter said that they needed to protect their daughter,” Alexander explained simply. “He was going to-“

“Wait, I’m gonna stop you right there,” John cut in, shaking his head quickly. “My sister’s not the hiring criminals type. She’s a fucking second grade teacher.”

“Not your sister,” Alexander corrected, folding his hands together. “Your father.”

“My dad?” John breathed out a soft laugh. “Not any more likely. My dad’s a congressman. Holy fuck. I can’t believe I didn’t see how crazy you were before.”

“All of my old victims did awful things,” Alexander pointed out. “Some were just murderers, but most of them were national security threats. A lot of people on top wanted them dead, that’s just fact. John, it all fits.”

“No, it doesn’t,” John argued. “And you’re insane. I’m leaving you here so you don’t kill my dad Reynolds style and traumatize my little girl.” Alexander averted his eyes towards the window and took in the bed and breakfast that John had parked in front of. “Get out of the car. I need to get back to my family.” Alexander heaved a soft sigh before turning back to John.

“We also need to talk about why Washington sent-“

“Alex,” John reached over and unfastened his seatbelt before pushing the passenger door open. “Out.”

“John, you really need to-“

“Get out!” Alexander nodded quickly and stumbled out of the car with his suitcase in tow. He had never seen John this upset, and that included when he had shot a man down in his apartment. He watched as the old car that John had borrowed sped away and let out a small sigh.

His finger hovered over Madison’s latest burner’s contact information before he decided that it was better to have this conversation behind closed doors. 

The lady at the front desk was nice enough, with a wide grin and platinum blonde hair. Her jeans were sprinkled with rhinestones and Alexander was momentarily distracted by wondering how she kept her skin from getting indented when she sits down, which almost made him smile. She handed him the key and he quickly retreated to the room, making sure that the door was shut behind him before calling Madison.

“Yes?” Madison answered after the second ring and Alexander flopped down on the bed before wincing. It felt like it was made of cardboard. Clearly, John wasn’t going for quality when he dumped him on the side of the road.

“Do you think those girls that wear jeans with rhinestones on their pockets get little indents on their ass?” Alexander shrugged off his jacket and hung it on the bedpost for the time being. 

“Why in God’s name would I know something like that, Hamilton?” Madison asked seriously.

“I don’t know,” Alexander shrugged. “You’re living with Jefferson. He seems the type to wear rhinestone jeans.”

“No, he says that they’re trashy,” Madison explained. “Why are you calling me about fashion?”

“It was a fleeting thought, forget it,” Alexander stated dismissively. “What have you found on Henry Laurens?”

“Not much yet,” Madison answered and there was some rustling on the other end of the line. Alexander assumed that Madison had printed something out. “He was a veteran that first ran for political office in 1980, but lost. Tried again in ’84 and won. Got into the House in ’08 and he’s been there ever since. He first privately announced that he was running for president about two months ago. He’s just a congressman, he’s not all that interesting.”

“So no criminal records?” Alexander asked.

“None that I’ve found,” Madison flipped through a couple more pages. “You would butt heads with the guy, but most people seem to respect him. Like I said, he’s pretty boring.”

“You know as well as I do that a lot of the worst criminals seem really boring on the outside," Alexander pointed out. Madison went silent, which Alexander decided was a victory. "What about any connections with Leroy Marks?”

“Why does that name sound familiar?” Madison asked slowly.

“He was a New York criminal,” Alexander explained. “He went after young girls.”

“When I was eighteen,” Madison confirmed. “Why would he be connected to some random criminal in a different state?” 

“He was also my first hit,” Alexander confessed. “I had gotten some big letter in the mail. It said that Leroy was going after some girl, the writer’s daughter, and that my tuition at Columbia would be paid for if I killed him.” 

“You were doing this in college?” Madison whispered after a moment of silence. “I knew you were weird but how did I not pick up on this?” 

“Yes, you lived with a killer and didn’t sense it,” Alexander shrugged dismissively. “You live with Jefferson now, not much of an upgrade there. Can we move past the shock?” 

“Sorry, this hitman scene is new for some of us,” Madison answered wearily. “Was this letter typed?” Alexander shook his head before realizing that Madison couldn’t see him.

“No,” he stated. “It was handwritten.”

“Do you still have it?” Madison asked. “If you still have it, I could find something that Henry handwrote and compare them.”

“No,” Alexander had a brief memory of shredding all evidence of his hits before John came over and felt his stomach sink. He couldn’t admit to a forensic scientist that he destroyed evidence. “It was in a box in my old apartment. All of that stuff got lost in the fire.”

“Are you sure?” Madison’s voice was a little more deflated at that.

“Yes, I’m positive,” Alexander confirmed quickly. “Sorry.”

“That’s James Reynolds’s fault, isn’t it?” Madison asked suspiciously. Maybe he was better at detecting liars than he was in college.

“Yeah,” Alexander answered with a breathy laugh. “Damn you, Reynolds. I’m going to try the Leroy Marks angle. If I get any more handwritten notes, I’ll send them your way. I’ve gotten one or two over the years to keep me in check.” 

“Okay, goodbye,” Madison sighed before the line went dead. 

Alexander spent the next few days holed away in his room and printing out everything he could find on Henry Laurens. He’d occasionally text John to check in on him and would got a cryptic ‘ _still not dead’_ back every time. Henry was not as boring as Madison made him out to be, and Alexander wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not.

“Apparently he was a prisoner of war,” Alexander mumbled out loud on day three as he scribbled into his quickly filling notepad before breathing out a soft laugh. “Shit. Maybe I should check out John McCain while I’m at it.”

Henry Laurens may be a decent politician at best, but Alexander wouldn’t call the guy a family man. His wife had died after giving birth to John’s sister and he hadn’t remarried. His other siblings got a sentence between them, but John wasn’t even mentioned by name. He glanced down at his phone for a brief moment before deciding that John didn’t need to know this particular fact.

A loud knock interrupted his thoughts and he jumped violently. 

“I told you, no room service,” Alexander called as he got up from the bed. His hip popped in argument as he moved for what felt like the first time in days. The knock was harsher and he stormed towards the door, mumbling curse words under his breath. “What?”

“Are you Alex?” the girl who was looking up at him had fierce brown eyes and was using a hand to keep the wind from catching her green dress. Her dark locks whipped across her face and she blew out a puff of air when a strand got stuck to the corners of her lips. 

“Who’s asking?” Alexander could feel the wind blow his hair to the side and he had to lean against the door to keep it from slamming. It was a little shocking; last time he’d been outside, there had been absolutely no wind. 

“I’m Martha,” she stated. “Martha Manning. I’m Frances’s mother.” Alexander could feel his stomach sink at her revelation and bit his lip gently. 

“Is he okay?” he asked softly, momentarily forgetting about the wind. At the confusion on her face, he repeated himself a bit louder. 

“Yeah, he’s fine,” Martha seemed confused by the question and Alexander quickly relaxed so he wouldn’t raise suspicions. “He wants you to come stay with us until this whole thing blows over.” Alexander narrowed his eyes and Martha attempted to tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “The hurricane that’s been all over the news?”

“The what?” The word sent his system into overdrive and suddenly even the forceful wind tugging at his still tucked in shirt wasn’t enough air.

“Are you okay?” Manicured fingers closed around his wrist and Alexander realized that he had been swaying.

“Yeah.” Alexander looked towards the car. “Wind caught me off balance.” If Martha realized that the wind was blowing the other way, she didn’t say anything. He was thankful for that much, at least. “Give me a minute to pack up my stuff?”

“Hurry up, it’s real windy out here,” Martha stated as Alexander slammed the door shut. 

He barely made it to the bathroom before the contents of his lunch wound up in the toilet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ICYMI: I'm on [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com) or on twitter @linandt0nic


	12. In the Eye of a Hurricane...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Don’t be ridiculous, Alexander. You’ve gone head to head with killers. A little bit of wind isn’t going to kill you, right?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! It's been... a while, hasn't it? I'm sorry, I sort of put this fic on the back burner for a little while. Hopefully you don't hate me too much! But I finally finished this chapter and I was all anxious to post it but my internet died for like 2 hours. But alas, chapter 12 has arrived. Don't hate me too much.
> 
> Also, I'm not making any promises since sometimes I re-arrange or split chapters, but I'm thinking I should have about three chapters left? Just for a general idea. I'm going to look back at this note when I finish the fic and laugh at my optimism.

The ride back to Martha’s place was tense, to say the least. Alexander’s attention was fixated outside of the car. Raindrops slapped the glass, dribbling down until they were inevitably absorbed by another, larger drop and the cycle restarted itself. The windshield wipers were largely ineffective and puddles presented themselves in every crevice in the road, fanning out as Martha drove through them. 

“Kinda terrible weather, huh?” Martha asked after ten minutes. Alexander simply nodded.

Martha’s house was fairly tiny, but her large backyard made up for it. Martha stepped out of the car and nodded for Alexander to follow. He could hear the wind outside of the garage door and he was sure it would actually be strong enough to knock him off of his feet at this point.

A little girl with brown eyes and a face full of freckles was sitting on the couch with her legs crossed, staring at a now boarded window with apprehension. Her curly hair was tied back with a ribbon and Alexander was struck with how much this girl resembled John.

“Daddy!” the girl called at a closed door. “Your friend’s here!”

“You must be Frances,” Alexander greeted the girl, who scrunched her face in response.

“It’s _Fran_ ,” she stated, fake gagging at her full name.

“Franny, be nice,” Martha chastised.

“No, no, it’s okay,” Alexander laughed softly. “When I was a kid, I was the exact opposite. If anyone gave me a nickname, they’d get yelled at.”

“Sounds about right,” a soft voice breathed out from the door. “No shortened names to tarnish the great Alexander Hamilton.” But Fran wasn’t all that interested in his story.

“Pop-pop!” she exclaimed, rushing past her father into an older man’s arms. Alexander felt the color drain from his face.

“No,” he whispered as he met hazel eyes only familiar through photographs.

“You’re Jack’s buddy from the Big Apple,” the man said before cracking a tense smile. “Excellent. I’m Henry, his father. I’ve heard so much about you.” 

“Wonderful,” Alexander deadpanned, making brief eye contact with John. John was watching him intensely, as if he was expecting him to pull a gun out of his jacket. Alexander felt his cheeks blaze at the look and turned his attention back to Henry. “I’m Alexander Hamilton. It’s a pleasure.” If Henry noticed that wordless exchange between the two, he didn’t comment. 

“Would you mind helping me nail a board to the window, Alexander?” Henry asked. “Jack is absolutely hopeless with any of this. And should be spending more time with my granddaughter while he’s here.” 

“You’re one to talk,” John mumbled under his breath. If Henry heard him, he chose not to respond.

“Actually, I doubt I’d be much better,” Alexander laughed softly, folding his arms to his chest. The look Henry gave him shut him up pretty quickly and he nodded quickly. “But I’m happy to help any way I can.”

“Right this way then,” Henry nodded towards the door. Alexander sheepishly followed, glancing back over his shoulder at the others. _Better for him to be alone with the man than John anyways,_ he thought to himself as the door shut behind them. “My son mentioned that you work for George Washington.”

“Some may say I’m his right hand man,” Alexander answered evasively as he picked up the board, trying not to show in his face how heavy it was.

“And you were the one that told John about my political plans, I’m assuming?” Henry asked, his voice dipping despite putting in at least some effort to come across as impassive.

“I _assumed_ ,” Alexander started, putting emphasis on the word, “that he knew. Being your son and all.” 

“It was hush hush,” Henry answered, striking the hammer a bit harsher than he must’ve intended. “My son and I don’t always see eye to eye.”

“I have found that the thing about presidential elections is that nothing ever stays hush hush,” Alexander could feel his temper rising and shoved it back down. “Dirty little secrets come pouring out and it turns ugly, really fast.”

“I would’ve much rather told him myself than to have him hear it from one of Washington’s lackeys.” The hammer slammed against the table and Alexander jumped at the noise. He couldn’t help but feel like it could’ve just as easily made the same harsh contact with his skull. “Don’t meddle in family matters, son.” Alexander could feel his stomach twist violently at the word and had to grab at a chair to keep his knees from going out from under him.

“Don’t call me ‘son’,” Alexander spat back, taking a step closer to the man. Henry stared back at him with an iciness equal to Alexander’s fire. They both jumped, however, at the sound of someone clearing their throat.

“We made dinner,” Martha informed them in a hushed tone. Alexander whirled towards her, the intensity still present in his glare, and she coiled back in surprise. “Sandwiches. We figured, in case the power went out? They wouldn’t last too long in the fridge if it died.”

“That sounds wonderful,” Alexander instantly melted to exude warmness. After all, this girl didn’t do anything wrong. Except opening her house up to killers, but that could be chalked up to the fact that they were both excellent liars.

Dinner was tense to say the least. Between the glares that Henry was shooting him and the disinterest from John, Alexander never felt more uncomfortable in his life. To her credit, Martha tried her best to engage them in conversation about their life in New York.

“I’ve never been,” she stated as casually as she could manage, but Alexander could tell that she was almost as tense as he was. “Fran goes to see John sometimes for a holiday, but I can never afford two plane tickets so she has to go by herself.”

“Yeah,” Alexander agreed with a soft laugh, “prices are astronomical. Especially on short notice, might I add.”

“No one asked you to come,” John whispered. Judging by his expression, he seemed to have surprised himself with that comment as much as everyone else in the room. Alexander glanced over at him and he was staring down at the floor, worrying his lower lip with his teeth.

“You’re right,” Alexander mumbled, biting back an argument that Washington _had_ asked him to come, as a matter of fact. “I should get to bed, now that I’m thinking about it. Dinner was lovely, thank you.”

“Oh, are you sure?” Martha, who was the only one that seemed to feel bad about John’s snapping, asked. “It’s still early. We have plenty of sandwiches to eat.”

“Yes, I’m sure,” Alexander snapped, causing her to look down at her hands. Guilt washed over him, but he quickly pushed it to the side.

“I’ll show you to the guest room then,” she stated as she stood up and tucked her chair in. “Fran, it’s time for bed.”

“But it’s not even my bedtime!” Fran protested as Martha scooped her out of her chair. “And I’m not done with my sandwich!”

“Don’t argue, baby,” Martha mumbled as she walked down the hall, Alexander close on her tail. “So this is the guest room. It’s not very big, but-“

“But it’s perfect,” Alexander finished with a smile, hoping to ease some of the girl’s tension. “Thank you so much for your hospitality.”

“Well, we didn’t want you out by yourself during this ugly storm,” Martha stated with a smile. “The bathroom’s right down the hall to your right, holler if you need anything else.”

“Of course,” Alexander nodded.

“Goodnight, Alexander,” she whispered before cracking the door shut. He wasn’t intending on going to sleep anytime soon, instead going through his briefcase to find the papers he had printed out on Henry Laurens.

_Henry Laurens was born on March 6 th, 1964 in Charleston, South Carolina to an upper class family. He got accepted into Cambridge in England and obtained his business there. He planned on staying in England until his father died when he was twenty three years old. As the firstborn son, Henry was named the beneficiary the entire Laurens estate. This sudden increase in wealth helped Henry begin a career in politics and he ran for-_

The lights flicked off and Alexander was left in complete darkness. 

“Shit,” he hissed. He stood up and was about to ask Martha for a flashlight ( _“so I can protect the father of your child from her grandfather who is planning to kill her, of course!”_ ) when he heard the window rattle. He spun around and felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. “Don’t be ridiculous, Alexander. You’ve gone head to head with killers. A little bit of wind isn’t going to kill you, right?” Thunder rumbled, causing the house rattle violently. Alexander curled on the ground with a soft whimper. 

_The flooding had come out of nowhere and hadn’t stopped for days. Alexander had heard talk of a hurricane, but the seventeen year old had assumed that it would just be another rainstorm. That’s usually what wound up happening when people came into the store asking for hurricane supplies. Alexander had spent the day before the storm suppressing laughs and leading people to the canned food supply in his store._

_Now, hiding out on the top shelf in his store with all of the food products and rum he could salvage, Alexander felt like the fool he once believed these people to be. He wondered if everyone in Noah’s Ark went through the same mental process as this as they tried to swim to the same boat they had spent the previous week mocking._

_He passed the time writing about the hurricane in case he died and needed to leave a legacy behind, although he was sure if his thoughts were coherent at this point._

_The shelves weren’t exactly made of durable wood and the water had done its damage. He knew that it was only a matter of time before they began to crack under his weight. He was also down to his last few cans of fish and could feel his stomach cry out in starvation. He wasn’t sure if the shelf would break before his food supply ran out. He had spent hours attempting to decide if drowning or starvation would be a more merciful death. That is, if the cold winds against his already soaked clothes didn’t give him hypothermia first. Tears trickled down his already soaked cheeks as he wondered, not for the first time in his life, what he had done to deserve God’s cruelty._

_Alexander wasn’t sure if there was anyone left to miss him._

_“Hamilton!” a voice cried out. Alexander was sure that he was hallucinating because he was sure that Edward Stevens wasn’t smart enough to build a small boat out of spare supplies or brave enough to come find him. “Hamilton! Down here!”_

_“Edward,” Alexander slurred, gathering up his papers. “Praise God. Edward, you’re here.”_

_“Everyone’s gathered at the church, get down here!” Alexander gathered the last of his cans and his hurricane diary and stumbled off of the shelf._

_“Why did you save me?” Alexander asked with a hiccup, trying not to make his apparent drunkness all that obvious._

“What are you talking about? Alex!”

Edward never called him Alex

Alexander’s eyes flew open and he met a new pair of eyes that most definitely weren’t Edward’s blue ones.

“John?” Alexander straightened his posture to put some distance between himself and the very concerned man staring back at him. “What are you doing here?”

“I could hear you mumbling,” John took his hands with a small frown. A candle sitting on the floor in front of them illuminated his face. He was ethereal in the light, which wasn’t exactly helping matters. Alexander had to ignore the urge to reach out and touch his cheek to make sure that he wasn’t imagining this. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes,” Alexander answered, cursing his trembling voice. He could chalk it up to the fact that John was touching him and still staring at him with that disconcerting worry in his gaze. 

“I looked up the hurricane you mentioned when we first met,” John had a blanket and wrapped it around Alexander’s shoulders. He hadn’t even noticed it before it touched his arm and jumped slightly. “I found a first-hand account. Yours, actually.”  
  
“Oh,” Alexander stated hollowly, curling in more on himself.

“Alex,” John started, brushing his cheek tenderly. “It was beautiful. I felt like I was there with you. Made me cry like a little bitch, not gonna lie.”

“I was drunk off my ass when I wrote those,” Alexander tried to smile, but he could tell it came across as more of a grimace. “Apparently I write better when I’m wasted? I don’t know.”

“I don’t know how you lived through something like that,” John pulled him closer and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. Alexander stiffened at the touch, but eventually forced himself to relax when he realized that John wasn’t moving anytime soon.

“Can we talk about something else?” Alexander asked.

“Okay,” John whispered as Alexander dropped his head to John’s shoulder. The familiarity of this proximity calmed Alexander’s nerves slightly, but he could still feel his heart pounding. “I was arrested right before I finished high school.”

“Marijuana distribution on school property,” Alexander answered automatically, flinching slightly when John whirled towards him in surprise. “I dug that up when I thought I was going to whack you.”

“Right,” John gritted his teeth and took a shaky breath. “Shit, I don’t think Herc and Laf even know this full story, it's really fucking embarrassing. I only did it to impress a guy.”

“What do you mean?” Alexander asked slowly and John actually breathed out a laugh at that. The laugh killed a bit of the tension in Alexander’s shoulders and he found himself smiling back. “Did a stoner offer to fuck you if you sold him weed?”

“No!” John laughed harder, batting Alexander’s arm. After a brief pause, he finished, “a super hot, muscular undercover cop did.”

“You’re kidding,” Alexander felt himself laughing despite the sick feeling still lingering in his stomach. “How did that go down exactly?”

“This transfer student shows up at end of my senior year, yeah?” John started, rubbing small circles into Alexander’s arm. “Holy shit, Alex, this guy is gorgeous. Now that I think about it, there’s not an eighteen-year-old in existence that looks that good. But I was too blinded by his beauty to realize, of course.”

“Naturally, considering your awful taste in men,” Alexander giggled before nodding for him to continue his story.

“Anyways,” John continued, rolling his eyes at Alexander’s statement, “Not only is this guy my literal fucking wet dream personified, he also tells me that he’s from New York. Which was where I was planning on going to college, so there’s that whole connection too. I had straight A’s as a kid, so I would let him copy my homework and shit.”

“Tsk, tsk,” Alexander shook his head, pursing his lips to try to hide an amused smile.

“Not only that,” John’s voice shook with repressed laughter, “but- Jesus, this is going to make your drunk freestyling story sound so tame- I actually _serenated_ the guy in front of my homophobic South Carolinian classmates and asked him to the prom.” 

“You didn’t!” Alexander gasped, letting out peals of laughter.

“Oh, I did!” John was laughing as well and watching him fondly. “He turned me down, sadly. We stayed friends but I was one of those assholes that kept asking what I could do to get him to go out with me. He asked me if I smoked weed. I had never even seen weed in real life but I was falling for the guy. So I told him that I didn’t but I could get him some.”

“Oh, shit,” Alexander cursed and John nodded. 

“Uh huh,” he answered. “Anyways, he kept pressing me to get it for him and told me that he’d ‘find a way to repay me’ if I got it for him.”

“Which obviously means sex,” Alexander finished John’s thought. “That’s actually pretty fucking sketchy.” 

“It was,” John nodded. “But I didn’t care at the time. The guy was hot and I was a horny gay kid in a Conservative school. I had no idea where the fuck to get weed so I called my stoner cousin to help me. He got it for me and I called the sexy cop like ‘I got your shit, yo’. He told me that he’d meet me at school. This guy basically forced the money in my pocket and claimed that I sold him weed. The cops, like, stormed onto my school grounds and arrested thirty one of us.”

“Wait, didn’t you go to Catholic school?” Alexander cut in and John nodded. “So thirty one Catholic school kids were selling weed on school property?”

“Catholic school kids are kinda wild,” John grinned. Alexander shrugged as if to say ‘touché’ and John snorted out a small laugh. “So yeah, I was arrested for selling marijuana on school property. It completely fucked up my college plans, but I went to New York anyways.”

“That’s fucked up,” Alexander stated softly.

“Eh, I’m over it. Wanna hear the worst part of the story?” John asked with a snicker. Alexander nodded and John took a small breath. “There was this white boy in my math class that would copy all of my homework. Annoying little shit, but I was kinda scared of him. He was the resident stoner and even had a tattoo of a marijuana leaf on his arm, but the cop didn’t even fucking look at him.”

“Yay, systemic racism,” Alexander pumped a fist sarcastically, sitting up so he wasn’t leaning against John’s shoulder anymore. “I feel sort of bad for laughing at your story now. That had an awful ending.” 

“Nah,” John shook his head, meeting Alexander’s gaze. “I mean, it did. But it’s still funny shit.” 

“Right,” Alexander whispered. John leaned closer until Alexander felt a small puff of breath tickle his lips. He wasn’t sure who closed the distance between them; all that mattered was the hesitant lips brushing against each other and the hand on the back of his head. John lied back and pulled Alexander with him, working on unbuttoning his shirt when-

Alexander’s back pocket buzzed and he jumped in surprise. John watched him with concern and gave him a quick nod.

“That could be Washington. Or about my… situation,” he whispered. Alexander reached for his phone and checked the caller ID.

_Maria Reynolds._

“Maria?” he answered the phone, his voice hushed in case someone besides John could hear him. “Is everything alright?”

“Do you believe in the value of human life, Mr. Hamilton?” Maria asked, her tone emotionless. Alexander felt his stomach drop to his feet. John must’ve seen his face pale because a hand tugged on his arm and he turned to meet confused eyes.

_Alexander never got mail. What few friends he had didn’t have a clue where he was living. What made the situation weirder was the fact that there was no return address and the unstamped envelope in his hand was only addressed to “Mr. Hamilton”. Alexander felt uneasy as he tore open the envelope, looking at the picture that fell out._

_A scary looking man stared back at him with a Sharpied red X through his face._

_Alexander wanted to believe that this was a prank. It had to be. Things like this only happened in movies, and his life was far too tragic to be the plot of a movie. A handwritten letter was still in the envelope. Alexander noticed some ink bleeding through the photo and flipped it over.  
_

_“Leroy Marks?” he whispered to himself. He could feel his heart in his throat and, suddenly, the prank didn’t seem so funny anymore. With trembling hands, he managed to get the three-page letter out of the envelope and unfold it. He began to read it in a mumble, tears brimming in his eyes._

_“Do you believe in the value of human life, Mr. Hamilton?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for this fic in every chapter, but I will do it again. I'm a sucker for fluff so this makes me feel bad. If you missed it, I lifted the plot from 21 Chump Street and made it gay. Because that show destroys me on a daily basis, I s2g.
> 
> Find me on [tumblr](http://www.sarcasticonfetti.tumblr.com) or on twitter @linandt0nic. I promise I'm not as evil as you may assume based on this fic.


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